Love in Miami
by ladylibra73
Summary: AU - Stephanie finds love with Carlos Manoso in Miami.


Love in Miami

Stephanie finds love in Miami

Stephanie woke up to a beautiful sunny Sunday morning. She got up and looked out the window. The skies clear, not a cloud in the sky. A perfect day to go to the beach. She went in the kitchen to turn on the coffee maker and went to go to take a shower. When she got out of the shower, she heard the doorbell ring. She wrapped herself in a towel and quickly answered the door. She looked through the peep hole on the door. It was her sister Val. As soon as she opened the door, her two nieces Angie and Mary Alice came running in.

"Val! What are you doing here?"

"Oh I thought I would surprise you. Are you surprised?"

"Oh yes, but what are you doing here in Miami?"

"Albert decided we needed a vacation. So here we are."

"Where's Albert?"

"In the hotel room. He had business to attend to."

"How long have you guys been here?"

"A couple days. Albert thinks we need to go back on Wenesday. He thinks a client may need his help."

"Not much of a vacation if you're here for two days."

"Whatever works. So, are you happy here?"

"Yes I am. There aren't nosy people here. They're nice people here."

"I'm glad your enjoying it. Dad misses you."

"I spoke to dad last week. I guess dad and Sheila are getting real close."

"Yes they are. He told me on the phone that he may pop the question soon."

"Good. I love to see daddy happy again."

"Yeah so do I."

"He was never happy with mom."

"So, what are you doing today?"

"Going to the beach. Would you like to come?"

"Girls, would you like to go to the beach with your Aunt?" yelled Val.

"Yes!" they both yelled.

Stephanie went to put on clothes as Val sat with the girls and put on the TV. When Stephanie walked out of her room, Maria, Stephanie's roommate came walking in the apartment.

"Hi Stephie, you ready for church?"

"Church?"

"Yeah. I would like you to come with me."

Maria was latino with long brown hair, brown eyes, petite and skinny. She wore a white skirt with a dark blue top and sandals. Maria worked for a law firm in Miami.

"Val, this is my roommate Maria. Maria, this is my sister Valerie and her daughters, Angie and Mary Alice."

"Nice to meet you." said Maria.

"Same here." said Val.

"Maria. My sisters and her daughters are here. We're planning to go to the beach."

"Bring them along and you can always go to the beach later."

"Well, are we ready?" asked Maria putting her hands together.

"Kids put your clothes on, we'll go to the beach later."

"Awww." they both said.

Half hour later,they arrived at the church. People were already walking in. They sat in the tenth row with Val in the outside, Angie and Mary Alice in the middle and Steph and Maria. Steph was looking around when she saw a handsome latino guy a couple rows down. He had a ponytail and also latino. His eyes stopped on hers and they locked eyes. He broke eye contact and was talking to the woman beside him. Probably his wife. The Priest came out and did his sermon. An hour later, the service was over. Stephanie and the girls were about to walk to the car when Maria came over.

"Stephanie I would like you to meet someone." Maria said grabbing Stephanie's hand. "Stephanie, I would like you to meet Celia, Carlos' sister, this here is Julie, Celia's niece and Carlos' daughter. "

"Pleased to meet you." said Stephanie holding out her hand to everyone. When Stephanie touched Carlos' hands, a bolt of electricity went down her spine.

"Same here." he said.

"This is her sister Val and her daughters, Angie and Mary Alice." said Maria.

Celia shook hands with Val.

"Carlos works for Rangeman. Big security company. If you need to protect your house from burglers, he's your man. He's also a bounty hunter." said Maria smiling.

"That sounds awesome."said Stephanie smiling.

"Well, it was nice meeting you Val, nice to meet you Stephanie." said Celia.

"Same here." said Stephanie with a smile.

"I'll be right back." said Maria.

"Wow, is that guy ever gorgeous. I could see the spark when you two shook hands. I think you should hook up with him."

"Val. I don't need match making."

"Hey, just trying to help."

"Hey guys. So, what do you think of my friends."said Maria.

"Very nice people." said Val.

"Yes they are. So Stephanie, what do you think of Carlos? I saw something spark between you two."

"Please stop. I don't need any match making. I'm going to the beach. Are you girls ready?" Stephanie asked Mary Alice and Angie.

"Yes!" they shouted.

They spent all day at the beach. At four thirty, they gathered all their things and headed back Maria's condo.

"Did everyone have a good day?" Stephanie asked the kids.

"Yes." they shouted.

"We'll be going. Albert actually made arrangements to go back home tomorrow."

"Tomorrow? You just got here."

Albert is needed at work, so we're leaving tomorrow."

"No problem."

"We'll talk soon." said Val giving Steph a hug. She hugged the girls and they left. She looked at the clock and realized she was going to be late for work. She quickly showered, got dressed and out the door. She got to the diner a little after five. She snuck in without her boss seeing her. At twelve thirty, her shift ended. The place was busy and her feet ached. She couldn't wait to go home and put her feet up. She was about to unlock her car door when someone from behind her approached her.

"Slowly give me your wallet."

Stephanie saw the man's reflection on the window. He was bald and had a moustache. She slowly grabbed her wallet, but instead she grabbed her pepper spray.

"Here, take this."

She aimed the spray at the guys eyes and tried unlocking the door when the guy grabbed her.

"You''ll be sorry you did that!" said the man aiming the gun at her. Stephanie closed her eyes.

"Let her go."

Stephanie opened her eyes and saw that it was the guy Maria introduced her to.

"Let her go and leave peacefully." Carlos said aiming his gun at the guy.

Baldy turned around.

"I just wanted to talk to the lady."

"Not what I saw. You were going to rob her and knows what else. So, we can do this the easy or the hard way."

"Seems like you won't leave us alone." Baldy said putting his gun. "I guess we'll do this the hard way."

"I'm ready." said Carlos putting away his gun.

They circled each other and began to fight. Stephanie was simply amazed on how Carlos could fight. He did get punched in the face, but that didn't stop him. Baldy had more bruises than Carlos did. After ten minutes of fighting, Baldy finally surrendered and left. When Baldy was gone, Carlos walked over to Stephanie.

"Are you ok?"

"Yes I am. How did you know I was in trouble?"

"I was in the neighborhood. What are you doing here in the middle of the night?"

"Leaving work. Where did you learn those moves?"

"Army. Let's get you home before someone else tries to rob you. Get in your car and I will follow you home."

"I will be ok."

"I want to make sure you get home ok."

Stephanie rolled her eyes and got in the car. Ten minutes later, she was home. Carlos parked beside her. She gathered her bags and headed inside the condo. She turned around and saw that Carlos was following her.

"You know I'm not in any danger."

"At one in the morning, anything can happen."

She was about to unlock the door when Carlos took her key.

"Let me."

Carlos drew his gun and walked in slowly. He checked all the rooms and came back to the front door.

"The place is secure. How can you afford a place like this?"

"It's not mine, it's Maria's. We're roommates."

"Great. Like I said, nobody is after me. We keep this place locked up tight."

"You never know. Here is my card if you want a career change."

"I'm happy with the job I have."

"I'm not. Think about it and have a good night."

He was almost out the door when he came back.

"Here is your key."

When their hands touched, Stephanie felt a zing down her spine.

"Have a good night Babe."

After he left, she locked the door. She looked out the window and watched him drive away. She looked at the card Carlos gave her. Rangeman Security.

"What would I do at a security office?"

Five days later, she entered the condo and found Carlos sitting on the couch.

"What are you doing here and how did you get in here?"

"Still working at the diner? Have you thought about the job opportunity?"

"You didn't answer my question. How did..."

"I picked the lock. So have you thought about the job opportunity?"

"What job? What is there to do in a security business?"

"We just don't do security. I'm a bond enforcement agent."

"That's a bounty hunter right?"

"Yes."

"You want me to become a bounty hunter?"

"No. What I'm looking for is someone to do searches. Either I or my men go to the bond office and gets files on criminals and we search their background. Where they live, their relatives. etc. Then we find them. Does this interest you?"

"Any benefits?"

"Full benefits, 401K, etc."

"I will have to think about it."

Carlos got up.

"Don't wait too long." said Carlos walking closely by her. She felt a shiver.

Chapter 2

Three days later, she arrived at the gate at Rangeman. Not a very big building. Seven floors. She pressed the button and spoke to the intercom. The gate opened and she drove in. She drove in the garage and parked next to a black Porsche. When she got out of the car, she noticed they were all black. She walked to the elevator and pressed L for lobby. When the doors opened, she noticed a very muscular man sitting at a desk.

"You must be here to see the Boss."

"Yeah."

He picked up the phone and spoke quickly.

"He will be right down."

She wait two minutes and saw Carlos walk out of the elevator. Carlos. He wore a black shirt that showed muscle everywhere. He wore black pants,black boots and his hair was pulled back in a pony tail. She wondered what he looked like naked. She wondered where that thought came from. She shook her head and smiled.

"I see that you made up your mind."

"Yeah, I got curious."

"Good then, let's go."

He led to a door to a stairway upstairs.

"I'll give you a tour."

He opened the door and she was amazed. It almost looked like a bowling alley.

"This here is the gun range and the gym is in the next room. Guys practice their shooting and the gym is used daily. You will be given a gun and practice."

"I hate guns."

"Better get used to them"

He walked back to the door and we walked up another flight.

"Here we have conference rooms. There are more on the third floor. On the fourth there are apartments."

This time they took the elevator. When the doors opened, Stephanie noticed a room with a bunch of monitors. She walked in and noticed the room was octagon shape. There were four guys sitting at one station and four more guys on the other side. There was a huge monitor in the middle wall of the back room. She followed Carlos and followed him and saw two conference rooms, the kitchen. She looked around.

"There isn't any doughnuts."

"No, there isn't. Here, we eat healthy food." Carlos said handing her a protein bar.

She made a face.

"Try it you might like it. Here's a bottled water too."

She unwrapped the bar and bit into it. Tasted ok.

"Not bad is it."

"It's ok."

He led her to an office where a big African American guy sat. 6'5, 300 lbs and bald.

"Stephanie, this is Tank. My second in command."

"Nice to meet you." said Stephanie extending her hand for a shake.

"Good to meet you."

"Stephanie will start working Monday. She will be doing searches."

"Welcome aboard."

They talked some more and led her to another office. This time there were two guys. The one sitting at the computer appeared to have the same skin tone as Carlos. The one standing was African American, but not as big as Tank.

"Stephanie, this is Bobby Brown, our company medic and that one is Lester Santos."

"Nice to meet you." she said, again extending her hand.

"Nice to meet you." said Bobby with a smile.

"Pleasure to meet you." said Lester.

Lester had green eyes and the look of a playboy. They made small talk and Carlos led Stephanie to the elevators.

"The sixth floor is where Ella and Louis stay. Louis is my maintenance man and Ella does the cooking, laundry and stuff like that."

"All by herself?"

"Yeah, she likes it and it keeps her busy. The seventh floor is where I stay. Any questions?"

"Do you own this place?"

"I'm the CEO of the company. I joined the Army when I was nineteen. Ten years later, I put together Rangeman. We're BEA and we also do security. We give the best security people need for their home and business. "

"Sounds very interesting."

"Anymore questions?"

"No, not at the moment."

"Great. I'll walk you down." Carlos said as the doors opened. He stepped in with her. She noticed the ring when he pushed the down button. When the elevator doors opened, he put his hand on the small of her back. She felt electricity go down her spine. Stephanie turned as they arrived at the door.

"Thanks so much for showing me around. You have a real nice place."

"Your welcome and thanks. I'll see you on Monday at 8."

8? She slept in till ten. She will have to get used to the change of work hours.

Chapter 3

On Monday, Stephanie arrived ten minutes early. She met Carlos in the lobby and followed him up the stairs. She was out of breath by the time she reached the top of the fifth floor.

"Join me tomorrow morning for a workout. We'll start with a slow walk on the treadmill."

"You want me to exercise?"

He pulled a box out of Stephanie's handbag.

"This box here, doesn't belong here. All this fat and sugar is not good for you."

"Those are mine." Stephanie said reaching for the box of doughnuts.

"Not anymore. Here, we eat healthy." said Carlos throwing the box in the nearby trash.

"So, what am I supposed to eat?"

"Plenty of good food in the lounge."

"Yeah, but that's healthy stuff."

"That's my point. Let's find you something good to eat and get you started on the searches."

Carlos grabbed a banana, water and a protein bar. Stephanie took the food and followed Carlos to her cubicle. He showed her how the system worked and thirty minutes later, Stephanie was on her own. From time to time, some of the guys introduced themselves. One guy appeared to be shy Stephanie noticed. He quietly introduced him as Hal. By noontime, Stephanie was getting hungry, so she went to the lounge to find something to eat. All healthy stuff Stephanie noticed. She would have to try to bring her own without Carlos noticing and hide it better in her bag. She sighed and found a turkey sandwich, an apple and a bottled water. As she sat down to eat, Lester came walking in.

"Good choice." Lester said walking by her.

"Yeah sure. There isn't any peanut butter and stuff like that."

"The Boss wants us to eat healthy. Part of the job."

"I don't know how you people survive like this." Stephanie unwrapping her sandwich.

"You get used to it." Lester said grabbing a sandwich and a water. He sat down with her.

"So, how is your first day going?"

"Great. Doing searches is pretty easy. Everyone seems to be nice."

They talked the whole lunch hour. They finished their lunch and Stephanie went back to her cubicle. Lester went back to the control room. By five, Stephanie was done. She turned off the computer and she got up and turned around, Carlos stood at the door. She put her hand to her chest.

"You scared me. How long have you been standing there?"

"A couple seconds. So, how is everything?"

"I'm finished. They were pretty easy"

"Great. There will probably be more tomorrow. Are you on your way home?"

"Yes I am."

"Come on upstairs with me. I'll have Ella bring us supper."

This time they took the elevator. When Stephanie entered the apartment, she was in awe on how nice the apartment was. The apartment was done in earth tones, very masculine and orderly. The living room had a L shaped leather brown couch, with a fifty inch TV in the center of the wall in front of the couch. A snack bar behind the couch. A dining room and kitchen behind a swinging door. She found the master bedroom with a big bed. When she walked in the bathroom, she was simply amazed. A Jacuzzi sat in the left corner and a shower to the right. She walked out and saw a walk in closet full of neatly pressed clothes. All black.

"This place is nice. Do you and your wife stay here?"

"It's just me."

"So, where is your wife?"

"A couple of the guys live in the 4th floor apartments. There is one more open if you want to stay here. You wouldn't have to travel back and forth everyday."

"No, that's ok. It's only a ten minute drive."

There was a knock at the door. Carlos went to answer it. Ella came in with a cart and set the table. Carlos' phone rang.

"I will be right there. I have to go. One of the client accounts we have has been broken into. I will be back later." Carlos said rushing out the door.

"I'll just put this in the stove." Ella said. "Hi, I'm Ella."

"Stephanie."

"Nice to meet you. I sure hope you're hungry."

"Yes I am." said Stephanie sitting down.

"So, how are you liking your new job?"

"It's good. All the guys are nice. This apartment is very nice."

"Yes. I designed it myself."

"I hear you do all the cooking and laundry."

"Yes I do. Keeps me busy."

"Does Carlos have a wife? You would think she would be here doing all that."

"Carlos's wife died six year ago."

"Oh I'm sorry."

"Don't be. She wasn't a housewife. Rachel was her name and they worked together. They met ten years ago when Carlos was on a break from the Army. They met at a bar and connected instantly. They dated several months and then one day, he asked her to marry him. She said yes. The got married on Valentine's Day. It was so beautiful. Months after that, Julie was born. She looks so much like Rachel. A year later, Carlos decided to retire from the Army and build a company, Rangeman. They worked together going on missions, she would do distractions. In order to get a skip, she would dress up in a sexy slutty dress to get the skip out and it worked. Then six years ago, a distraction didn't go so well. For months, Rachel and Carlos were always watching Rodrigo Santoro. A very bad drug dealer, murderer, rapist, trafficker. So Rachel decided she wanted to go undercover to get the girls out of his house. Carlos said it was too dangerous. Rachel got Carlos to believe she can do it and she would be very careful. So Rachel and Carlos started a plan to rescue the girls. Santoro would spend Wednesday nights in a club in Miami. That's when Rachel would go in and rescue the girls. So that night, Rachel and the guys went to the house. Carlos and the guys watched closely from the woods. Of course the house was heavily guarded. She took all the guards out. She went in, but then something happened. A man came out with Rachel with a gun to her head. It turns that Santoro wasn't at the club, it was his brother. Somebody screwed up. Santoro knew Carlos was hiding somewhere. Then Santoro shot Rachel in the head. Carlos wanted to go down there and kill Santoro, but the guys didn't let him. Santoro burned her body. A couple days later, Carlos went to Santoro's house to investigate. The women were gone. Santoro must have moved them somewhere else. Carlos was a mess. He wouldn't sleep, eat. He closed himself off to everyone. He wouldn't let anyone rest until Santoro was found."

"So sorry. Did Carlos try to kill himself?"

"He tried a few times, but he couldn't do it."

"So, what kept him from killing himself?"

"Julie, their six year old daughter."

"Oh my God." said Stephanie putting her hand over her mouth.

"Julie was a year old when it happened."

"This is so sad. Who takes care of her?"

"Carlos's sister Celia. She takes Julie to school and Julie visits here everyday. She stays with Celia that Carlos and Celia own. Their parents died in a plane crash when they were in their twenties. Their parents left them the house on the beach."

"This is so devastating." said Stephanie as tears started to fall.

"It was a tough couple years. He still hasn't stopped finding Santoro.

Stephanie wiped her eyes with a napkin.

"Anyways, eat your lunch before it gets cold. It's nice to meet you Stephanie." said Ella getting up and leaving.

Stephanie sniffed as she began eating. How awful for that little girl to grow up without a mother. Stephanie ate a few bites. She couldn't eat anymore so she found tinfoil and put the plate in the fridge. She took the water and walked in the living room when Carlos walked in.

"You weren't gone long?"

"It was a false alarm. You done eating?"

"I only had a few bites."

"What's the matter? Are you sick?"

"No. Ella told me what happened to Rachel. I'm so sorry for your little girl to grow up without a mother. Have you told her?"

"No and she will never know. I told her her mother died giving birth to her. I will probably tell her the truth when she gets older. So, if you're done eating, I would like to eat my lunch." said Carlos walking to the kitchen. When he came back, he brought his plate and bottled water to the table.

"I'm a good listener if you want to talk more."

"I said leave!" Carlos yelled.

That startled Stephanie and she quickly left the apartment. She didn't wait for the elevator so she quickly took the stairs. She went back to her cubicle and started on another file. Ten minutes in she couldn't concentrate. She put the file back in the inbox, turned off the computer and gathered her stuff and left. No one saw her leave.

An hour later, Carlos walked to his office. He noticed Stephanie's light in her office was out.

"Has anyone seen Stephanie?" Carlos called out.

"I saw her. She was leaving in a hurry. She took the stairs instead of the elevator."

"What's going on Rangeman?" asked Tank.

"Stephanie left."

"Maybe she had to run an errand." said Tank.

Carlos pulled out his cell phone dialed her cell. Went straight to voice mail. He looked into his computer and saw where she was.

"Lester, go get Stephanie and bring her back."

"Where is she?"

"At her apartment."

Stephanie put all of her dirty clothes into the hamper and was just about to walk out the door when she saw Lester.

"What are you doing here?"

"I was told to bring you back to Rangeman." said Lester.

"Why, so Carlos can yell at me some more?"

"Why did he yell at you?"

They sat on the sofa.

"He invited me for lunch and I looked around his apartment. Very nice. Ella came with our lunch. Carlos had a call and had an emergency call so he left. I asked her if Carlos had a wife and to my surprise she died six years ago."

"Yeah, really devastating. It was tough thing to watch her die like that. Carlos was really tough on us. He wanted us to find Santoro until he was found. He even had the other Rangeman facilities to look too. Nobody could find him. It's like he just disappeared."

"So why aren't you and the other guys looking? Like a skeleton crew."

"We're needed there at Rangeman. Carlos has other guys watching for Santoro. Carlos said he wants to be the one that kills Santoro. So, why did Carlos yell at you?"

"Well, after Ella told me the story about Rachel and after she left, I couldn't eat. Carlos came back a few minutes after. I told him what Ella told me about Rachel and I said I'm a good listener if you want to talk more about it. He raised his voice and told me to leave. So I quickly left the apartment and out of Rangeman quickly. He just scared me. Is he always like that?"

"Yeah, when he wants something done yesterday. Everything is going to be ok Beautiful. He wants you to come back, that's why he sent me here."

"I can't go back there."

"Yes you can, come on. Nothing is going to happen to you. I assure you everything will be good. Trust me."

Half an hour later, she got off the elevator on the fifth floor. She didn't see Carlos anywhere.

"He wants to see you in his office." said Tank.

Stephanie walked towards Carlos's office. She stopped at the door and she saw that he was working at his desk, writing.

"You may come in." Carlos said without looking up.

She slowly walked in and stood by his desk.

"Have a seat." he said without looking up.

He looked at her with a somber look. He sat there and stared at her which was making Stephanie very nervous.

"I'm going to let you in on the Santoro case. Tomorrow morning you're going to practice using a gun and going to the gym every morning at six and do you have any slutty looking dresses?"

"No I don't."

"Here is my Amex card. Use it to get short dresses and such. You're dismissed."

"How much is on this?"

"Whatever you like to put on it. Now go."

Stephanie took the card and walked to her cubicle. She turned on her computer and got to work. By four, she finished all her files. She turned off her computer and gathered her things and when she turned around, Carlos stood by the door.

"Where are you going?"

"All the files are finished and since I'm done. I'm going to do some dress shopping."

"Ok, just be here at six tomorrow for your morning workout."

"Oh, don't worry, I'll be bright and early."

She headed to Macy's to find exotic dresses. She just didn't buy dresses, she bought other things as well.

Chapter 4

Stephanie arrived at the Rangeman gym before six. She saw a few guys working out. A couple were at the corner talking as they stopped and stared. She looked away as Carlos came walking in.

"Good, you're on time."

"Well, I wouldn't want to make the boss angry. So, what do you want me to do?"

"Start on the treadmill, half an hour." said Carlos setting her up.

Stephanie watched Carlos bench press. She watched two other guys sparring. Half an hour later, the treadmill stopped and she got off. She walked over to Carlos when he was still bench pressing.

"Wow, how long have you been doing that?"

Carlos stopped and put the barbell back on the holder and sat up.

"A while."

"Is that all you do?"

"No, I get up at five and jog for an hour. You can go shower, One o'clock today I'm going to show you how to use a gun."

"Oh, can't wait."

"You can use my shower."

"No, thank you."

"So you'd rather stink all day."

"Here, use can use my shower. My apartment number is 2 on the fourth floor." said Tank handing her a key.

"Are you sure?"

"Yes. Go ahead."

"Thanks."

Stephanie took the key and left.

"What's going on with you two?"

"Nothing."

"Why are you so hard on her? What did she do to you that's making you so pissed off?"

Carlos looked down to the floor.

"Ella told her about Rachel and Stephanie said she would be a good listener if I wanted to talk more about it. I didn't. I yelled and told her to leave."

"You can be an ass. Maybe she was just trying to be nice and thought she might want to listen. It would be good to get everything out instead of keeping it all inside." said Tank walking away.

An hour and fifteen minutes later, Stephanie walked in Tank's office.

"Thank you so much for using your shower." said Stephanie handing Tank the key.

"Not a problem. You can use my shower after gym time if you want."

She was about to leave Tank's office when she heard Carlos' voice.

"Hey Steph. Don't forget we have a one o'clock gun practice."

"Won't miss it." said Stephanie walking away.

At one o' clock, Carlos walked into Stephanie's cubicle.

"Are you ready?"

Stephanie got startled and stood up.

"Sure, let's go." she said walking out of her office.

When they got on the elevator, she stood on the other side of the elevator. It was a silent ride all the way down. She walked out first when the door opened. He walked towards a huge black cabinet. When he opened it, she noticed there was a lot of ammo, headsets, goggles. He grabbed some ammo, headsets and goggles. He closed the cabinet doors and walked to another set of doors. When he opened the doors, the lights automatically came on. What she saw was a closet full of was absolutely amazed. He pulled out a Glock 19 and led her to a shooting station.

"I'm going to show you how to load a gun."

She watched closely.

"Now, I'm going to show you what to do. Hold the gun with two hands, arms out, point the gun at the target and shoot. Easy enough?"

"Sure."

"Great. Put on your goggles and headset."

After she put everything on, she took the gun, straightened out her arms, pointed the gun at the target and squeezed the trigger. She closed her eyes as she made the shot. She missed the target. She tried hitting the target until she emptied the gun. She looked at Carlos and he wasn't happy.

"That was awful. You had your eyes closed the whole time. Let's try again."

She loaded the gun and tried again. The last shot she hit the target, in the foot."

"You can do better. Here, let me help you."

Carlos raised her arms. He put his hands on top of hers and put his finger on top of her finger and pulled the trigger. He let go and she raised the gun to the ceiling in the back corner.

"What is the matter?" Carlos shouted. "You could have easily shot that target! You have to stop closing your eyes!"

She angrily took off the headset.

"I have never done this before! You're making me nervous. You need to give me time to adjust to this." she said yelling.

"Yes it takes time, but your eyes are closed every time you take a shot off. Let's try again."

"No, I'm done!" Stephanie said taking off her goggles and angrily left the room. She almost ran into Tank in the hallway.

When Tank entered the room, Carlos put everything back and slammed the doors.

"What happened?" asked Tank.

"Don't start."

"I was watching from the monitors. I think she was doing a good job."

"She kept closing her eyes. What happens when she is out there and the enemy is aiming the gun at her? She is going to end up getting killed."

"Then she will practice some more. You don't have to be so hard on her the first time. Maybe the next time she will do better. Give her time."

The next morning, Stephanie arrived early at Rangeman to practice her shooting. She went to the cabinet to get the goggles,ammo and headset. Then she went to the walk in closet to get the gun. She loaded her gun, put on her headset and goggles and started.

At six, Carlos came back from his run when he didn't see Stephanie on the treadmill.

"Has Stephanie arrived yet"?

"She's in the gun range."

Carlos walked to the gun range. He walked in quietly and watched her. She was still closing her eyes and she was tilting her head to the right. When she stopped to reload, he walked over to her.

"You missed gym time. Every other day is practice time."

"I wanted to do this. I'll be in gym tomorrow morning."

The gun loaded and she started again and he watched her.

"You're still doing it. Keep your eyes open and don't tilt your head."

When she started again, he held her head straight. She stopped and quickly turned.

"What are you doing? I was doing fine until you touched me!"

"You're moving your head to the right. You have to keep it straight."

She reloaded her gun and he noticed she was moving her head down a little. She did hit the target above the head. He watched her over and over.

"You're still not getting it. You have to keep your head straight."

"Seems like I'm not doing anything right! First I don't show up for gym and now your getting on my case about how to keep my head. When are you going to get off my back!" Stephanie said throwing the headset on the table. "I'm new at this, give me time!" she said as she threw the goggles on the floor as she was leaving. She angrily opened the door and almost ran into Tank. Carlos was about to go after her when Tank stopped him.

"Let her go. Why are you being so hard on her? You need to cool it." said Tank poking Carlos in the shoulder.

"Don't tell me what to do! You would be on her case too if she wasn't doing anything right."

"I wouldn't be so hard on her, unlike you." Tank said poking him again.

"Do that again and you're fired!"

"You wouldn't fire me. I'm the best you got!"

"I can get someone better!"

This time Tank punched him. Carlos tried to punch him back, but he missed.

"Let's do this in the gym." said Tank.

When they got to the gym, Carlos took off his shirt and took his stance. Carlos took the first shot and missed. They fought for an hour and Carlos got the most damaged. Tank got punched in the eye and nose. Tank punched Carlos in the eye, nose and jaw.

"Had enough?"

Carlos was breathing heavily.

"Good then. See you upstairs." Tank said as we walked out of the gym. Carlos watched him. How could he beaten like that? He walked out of the gym and went to the seventh floor to shower and treat his wounds.

Stephanie was focusing on a file she was reading when she saw Tank come in. She noticed his eye was swollen.

"What happened to you?"

"Carlos and I were fighting."

"Why?"

"I didn't like how he was treating you when you were practicing your shooting."

"I don't understand him. Why is he treating me like this?"

"He's still upset about what happened to Rachel."

"Well, he shouldn't take it out on me. He should give me a chance to get used to shooting a gun and I hate them."

"It's part of the job. Look, you're doing fine. Each day, you'll get used to shooting the gun and not move your head and close your eyes."

"So, who won?"

"I did. I gave him a bloody nose, I punched him in the eye and jaw. Right now, he's nursing his wounds."

"Why do I feel so sad for him?"

"Don't be. He's gotten what he deserved."

Just then, Stephanie saw Carlos walk into his office. She noticed a band aid under his eye.

"I'll let you get back to work. Keep smiling." Tank said as he got up.

At noon, Stephanie went to get her lunch in the lounge and brought it back to her cubicle. The file she was looking at was Antonio Santoro. She typed out his name in the computer and all the information came on. What she saw amazed her. He was Rodrigo's brother. He was charged with rape and murdering women in Tallahassee, Florida. The file said he could be anywhere in the Miami area. She printed the information. Should she show it to Carlos? She got up and when she got close to his office, she stopped. What if he is still mad at her? Then his phone rang. She couldn't hear what was being said, but it was a short conversation. As soon as he was off the phone, she walked in. He was just about to leave the office when she walked in. She noticed he had a black eye and a bruise on his jaw.

"Yes, what I can help you with?"

"I found this file on Antonio Rodrigo. I thought you might be interested in seeing this."

"Yes thank you."

"Aren't you interested on what I found? Antonio, Rodrigo's brother is wanted for raping and murdering women somewhere in the Miami area.

"Yes I know. I just got a call from a friend of mine."

"What's going on Rangeman?" asked Tank.

"I just got off the phone with Skip and he said he saw Antonio Santoro in at a club last night in Miami called E11Even. He overheard them talking and he said Antonio will be there again tonight." said Carlos.

"I found the file. He's charged with raping and murdering women in Tallahassee, Florida."

"That's very good. This will be useful." said Tank.

"The place doesn't open till 11:30. Gather Lester, Bobby, Cal, Hal and Ram in ten minutes in the conference room. We need to make a plan." said Carlos to Tank.

"What about me? Shouldn't I learn on what goes on and how to go about it?"

"Yes you should. Go home and dress up. Come back here at ten thirty. We'll get you wired and stuff." said Carlos.

Stephanie quickly grabbed her bag and left.

Chapter 5

At ten thirty, Stephanie stepped out of the elevator with all the guys gawking. Stephanie wore a black Sexual Splendor Side Cutout Dress. Carlos walked out of his office and wondered what everyone was looking at. Carlos stopped dead in his tracks. He couldn't believe what he saw. That definitely was a distraction dress. Her hair was loose with some curl and lay on her left shoulder. She wore black thigh high lace up stiletto boots. Carlos couldn't stop staring. He cleared his head. Carlos tried not to stare at her breasts as we was putting the wire on her.

"Ok, everyone. Let's get this show on the road."

Stephanie, Carlos, Tank, Lester and Bobby went in the first truck and the three others went in a second.

"You look mighty fine there Beautiful. I was wondering later if I could take this off you."

"Santos!" Carlos yelled.

Lester winked. It was a ten minute to the club. When they approached the club, there was already a line and music was pumping from the inside.

"I want you to be extremely careful. This guy is very dangerous. What I want you to do is. Walk in there, order a drink, talk to him and try to lure him out of the club. Once you are out of the club with him, we will take him."

"Easy enough."

"Remember. We will be able to hear you. Don't tell him your real name. Make something up, anything. Just get him out of the club asap."

"Got it." Stephanie said

Stephanie got out of the black Escalade and tried to walk normally in her boots. When she walked in the club, the music was loud and there were a lot of people dancing. She found the bar and found Antonio sitting at the end of the bar. He was watching the people dancing. She found an empty seat next to him.

"Give me something strong." Stephanie said loudly to the barkeep.

"Bad night?"

"Yes. My boyfriend dumped me and it's our first year anniversary together."

"Oh, that's too bad. You're too beautiful to be dumped." Antonio sais eyeing her up and down. "What's wrong with that asshole?"

"I don't know. I thought everything was going well, but I guess not."

"Well, his lose. The name is Antonio. What's your name beautiful lady?"

"Maria."

"Lovely name."

Stephanie drank the whole thing."

"Wow, I have never seen someone drink like that."

"I'm going through a breakup. I deserve another one."

"By all means."

"Actually I shouldn't. I drove here."

"Well, I'll drive you home. I would love to take this dress of you."

"Please. This place is already giving me a headache."

Stephanie almost fell to the floor when she started walking. All the guys looked at her as she was walking out. One guy pinched her. When she turned around she almost fell when Carlos caught her. The guys grabbed Antonio and put him in the back of other Escalade.

"How did I do?" Stephanie asked.

"Very well for your first time." said Tank.

"Thank you." she said smiling. "Why am I seeing two of you?"

"Two of me? You can't be drunk, you only had one Margarita."

"I'm a light weight when I drink."

Then she fainted into Tank's chest.

"Need help here."

Lester and the others went over to Tank.

"What happened?" asked Lester.

"She's a little drunk."

"From one Margarita?" asked Lester.

"Guess so. She says she's a light weight when she drinks."

"Let's get out of here." said Carlos.

Carlos arrived at Stephanie's apartment at 12:30. She was still out cold. He got out of the Escalade and told the others to drive back to Rangeman and put Antonio in a cell. Carlos carried Stephanie out of the truck.

"I'll be back."

Stephanie got cozy in his arms. He took the elevator up to the second floor. He managed to get her door open. He flipped the light switch next to the door and closed it. He carried her to her room and put her on the bed. He took off her boots and covered her with the comforter. He was about to leave when she grabbed his hand.

"Don't leave, stay here."

"I can't stay, I have to leave."

"No, stay." she said getting up. She looked into his eyes.

"You have wonderful eyes, did anyone ever tell you that?"

"No."

"Well, you do."

She put her hands on his face and kissed him. She kissed him with passion, then pulled back.

"Wow." she said. Then her stomach rolled and threw up on the floor and rolled off the bed. She was out cold again. Carlos couldn't leave her like this. He dialed Tank.

"I'm staying here tonight. You drive back to Rangeman and pick me up in the morning."

After he got off the phone, he carried Stephanie in the bathroom and cleaned her up. He carried her back to her bed and covered her up and cleaned up the floor. From what he could tell, she was sleeping soundly so he turned off the light. He went into the living room and sat down on the couch. He felt a tingle go down his spine when she kissed him. Felt nothing like it before. He cleared his head and took off his gun belt and his shoes and laid down on the sofa. He covered himself with the comforter and went to sleep.

Chapter 6

The next morning, Stephanie woke up with a pounding headache. She slowly got up. She took her off her dress and put on a t-shirt and shorts. She needed the cure. She was about to walk to the bathroom when she heard a noise in the kitchen. She took the bat behind her door and slowly walked to the kitchen. She smelled coffee brewing. Who would break in and make coffee? Then she knew who it was. What was Carlos doing in her apartment?

"What are you doing here?"

"Morning. Making breakfast."

"Yeah. I see that, but how did you get in here?"

"You don't remember?"

"No."

"Last night we went to to this club in Miami to get Antonio Santoro at E11Even. You went in and talked to him and you had a Margarita. Is that coming back to you?"

"Some. How many did I have?"

"One."

"What happened after?"

"You brought him out and we took him. You fainted after that and I drove you home."

"Did I do or say anything stupid?"

"No nothing. I stayed in case something happened to you. Don't worry, I slept on the couch. Coffee? It'll help."

"Not with me. I need the cure."

"What is the cure?"

"McDonald's. That always helps me."

"So, what at McDonald's cures you?"

"Fries and a Coke."

"I'll have Tank get it. He's on his way to pick me up."

"Thank you." Stephanie said getting up and going to the bathroom.

"Welcome."

When Stephanie walked out of the bathroom, she saw Tank and Carlos talking.

"Hey, how are you feeling?" asked Tank.

"Awful, but this will make me feel better. Thanks."

"Welcome."

She quickly opened the back and grabbed a handful of fries then she washed it down with Coke.

"Mmmm, very good."

"Are you able to work today?"

"Yes I will be. Give me a couple of hours and I will be good as new."

"Great. See you in a couple of hours."

Stephanie raised her thumb as she was drinking.

"So, what happened last night?" asked Tank as they got in the truck.

"Nothing."

Tank just stared.

"She got sick, I cleaned her up and put her back to bed. I slept on the couch."

"Ok, if you said nothing happened, nothing happened."

Carlos thought back to the kiss. It was very passionate and sensual. When he got back to Rangeman, he quickly went to his apartment and took a cold shower. He felt much better after that. Today, he would go down to the cell and talk to Antonio. He had a busy day ahead.

Stephanie arrived at Rangeman shortly after ten. She was turning on her computer as Lester walked in.

"How are we feeling today?"

"I feel better. I had the cure."

"What is the cure?"

"Fries and a Coke. Makes me feel better in a few minutes."

"Wish that would work for me. You did a good job last night."

"Thank you. Hey, would you mind showing me how to shoot a gun?"

"Sure, let's go."

Carlos and Tank entered the basement cell that they were holding Antonio in. They tied him up in a chair with a lock holding onto the leg of the chair. Carlos took another chair and sat backward.

"I'm Carlos Manoso. Do you know why you're here?"

"I know who you are. You're the husband of the bitch my brother killed."

Carlos quickly took out his gun and pointed it at Antonio's forehead.

"Don't call her that! Now, tell me where Rodrigo is."

"I'm not going to tell you anything. Your wife wasn't supposed to be where she wasn't supposed to be. If she minded her own business, she wouldn't gotten killed. So you can torture me, ask questions and I still won't tell you."

"I'll be back later tonight, maybe then you'll talk."

When Carlos entered the fifth floor, he didn't see Stephanie in her cubicle.

"Did anyone see Stephanie come in today?"

"She's here. She came after ten, she is downstairs with Lester helping her with her shooting." said Ram.

Carlos took the elevator down to the shooting range. When he walked out of the elevator, he saw Lester standing behind Stephanie. How to hold the gun and stuff.

"Ahem."

Lester turned his head.

"Carlos. I was helping Stephanie practice. She's getting better."

"Good to hear. Don't you have to get back to monitor duty."

"Yes. See you later Beautiful."

"Bye."

She continued to practice while Carlos watched. She had gotten better. No more tilting her head and closing her eyes.

"Very impressive."

"Thank you." she smiled.

"Finish up." said Carlos walking away.

"Ok Boss."

Carlos turned around walked toward her.

"It's Carlos."

"Ok, Carlos."

She watched him walk out of the room. She smiled and continued to practice.

Later that night, Carlos, Tank, Lester and Bobby went down to the cell. Antonio fell asleep with his head on the table.

"Wake up!" Tank shouted.

Antonio sat quickly.

"I was wondering when you were going to come down again. You going to feed me?"

"You going to tell me where Rodrigo is?"

"Yeah, I'll tell you."

"Bring in the food." said Carlos.

Ram brought in the food and handed it to Carlos. Carlos put two slices of bread on the table and a bottled water.

"This is what you call food?"

Carlos took the chair and sat backward.

"Start talking." said Carlos.

Antonio took a bite of the bread and opened the bottled water. He took a sip of the water and spit it out at Carlos.

"I'll never tell you."

Carlos wiped his face with a rag. He got up from the chair and stood behind Antonio and grabbed his hair

"I had a good life with my wife, until your brother messed it up for me. We have a little girl, a little girl she won't get to see. Her mother won't see her graduate, her mother won't see her get married, have a baby, nothing! So, you tell me where your brother is!" Carlos yelled pulling Antonio's head back. He looked into Carlos' eyes.

"Go to Hell."

"You first." Carlos said pulling his knife and slicing Antonio's throat. They all watched him die.

"Do whatever you want with the body." said Carlos leaving the cell.

Chapter 7

Several months have passed and Stephanie's training has paid off. She went out in the field with the guys. She caught her first skip without a problem. She did a few distractions without getting herself drunk. When she ordered a drink, she pretended to drink it. Lester asked Stephanie out on a date. Carlos overheard and Tank took notice. The Boss acted jealous. The date went well. dinner and dancing. When Lester kissed Stephanie, it didn't feel right. They acted more like brother and sister, besides Stephanie knew Lester's reputation. The love em and leave em type. They remained friends. Stephanie was working hard when she just realized Fourth of July is tomorrow. She could always go to Miami Beach and watch the fireworks. At noontime she was about to walk into the lounge when Carlos spotted her.

"Hey Babe, I was wondering if you would to have lunch with me instead of eating in here."

"Um...sure." Stephanie said following Carlos to the elevator. He stood close to her all the way up. When the elevator doors opened, she went first and waited for him to open the door. When he entered the apartment, he walked towards to the kitchen.

"What would you like? Wine, water?"

"Wine please."

Stephanie looked at the file Carlos placed on the table. Rodrigo Santoro case. When he came out, he opened the wine bottle and poured. He went back in the kitchen and back with two plates. Roasted chicken, brown rice with mixed veggies.

"The chicken and rice look good, but the veggies have to go."

"They're good for you. Part of the diet."

"Well, you can get me to exercise, but you can't get me to eat vegetables. What file are you looking at?"

"The Santoro case."

"Anything new pop up?"

"No, but I was wondering if you want to take a look at it. See if something catches your eye, something I may have missed."

"Sure, let me see..." said Stephanie as she held out her hand to reach over, when the bottle of wine tipped over onto Carlos' shirt.

"Oh my God! I can't believe that happened."

"Don't worry, I have others and I'm sure Ella can get this out." said Carlos getting up.

Stephanie cleaned up the wine and sat back down and ate when Carlos stood by the bedroom door.

"My sister and I are having a Fourth of July party. She was wondering if you would like to come."

"Sure I..." said Stephane looking up.

Stephanie couldn't believe her eyes. She saw the most magnificent body she had ever seen. Smooth mocha latte skin, muscular arms and chest, eight pack abs. She started coughing and as Carlos ran over and patted her on the back.

"Here, drink this." Carlos said handing her a bottled water.

"Are you ok?" Carlos as she was done drinking.

"Yes, thank you. I must have choked on some rice."

"Don't put so much in your mouth."

"I didn't. It went down the wrong pipe."

"So, are you able to come to the Fourth of July party?"

"Sure, I'll come."

"Great. Come by at five if you would like." Carlos said walking back to the bedroom.

Forty five minutes later, they went back down to work.

"Thanks for lunch." said Stephanie.

"You're welcome."

Tank watched the interaction between Carlos and Stephanie. It's about time he moved on.

On Friday, they worked half a day. When Carlos arrived at the house, Celia and Julie were starting to get things ready.

"Daddy!" she said running to him. He picked her up.

"Hey Jules." he said hugging her.

"Are you going to get the hamburgers and hot dogs ready?" asked Celia.

"Yes. There is something I have to do. I'll be down in a few minutes." Carlos said going up the stairs. He entered his office and closed the door. He went to the safe on the wall. He took out a small box and placed it on his desk. He sat down and opened it. He took out a framed picture of Rachel. She was sitting at the beach smiling brightly.

"I miss you Rachel." Carlos said touching the picture. "It's been six years since you died. We have a wonderful daughter, she is six. She has your eyes. I haven't caught Rodrigo yet, but I will. I will break every bone in his body for killing you. That I promise you. One other thing I need to tell you." Carlos said touching his ring.

Say Something I'm giving up on you

I'll be the one if you want me to

Anywhere I would've followed you

Say Something I'm giving up on you.

And I am feeling so small

It was over my head

I know nothing at all

"I hired this woman several months ago. She was working at a diner until midnight and this guy approached her from behind and demanded money. I saved her life and got her a new job at Rangeman. She's doing research on skips. Her name is Stephanie Plum by the way. She was a little shaky while practicing her shooting, but she got better. She even helped us get Antonio Santoro. She did an amazing job getting him out. He's dead by the way. I tried getting information from him on where Rodrigo is, but he failed to do that, so I killed him.

And I will stumble and fall

I'm still learning to love

Just starting to crawl

Say something I'm giving up on you

I'm sorry that I couldn't get to you

Anywhere I would've followed you

Say Something I'm giving up on you

"Anyways, I haven't told Stephanie how I feel about her yet, so hopefully tonight, which is the Fourth of July, I just hope she feels the same way. She brings light back in my life. I'll never forget you Rachel. You'll always be in my heart." Carlos said.

And I will swallow my pride

You're the one that I love

And I'm saying goodbye

Say Something I'm giving up on you

And I'm sorry that I couldn't get to you

And anywhere I would have followed you

Oh, oh, oh oh Say Something I'm giving up on you

Say Something I'm giving up on you

Say Something

He took off his ring. He looked at it and put in the box along with the picture. He put the box back in the safe and the left the office. He went in his room to change clothes and headed downstairs to start the burgers and hot dogs for the party.

Stephanie arrived at Carlos' house at five. When she knocked, Celia answered the door.

"Stephanie! I'm so glad you could come, come on in"

"I made a fruit salad." Stephanie said handing her the bowl.

"Wonderful. Everyone is out back. Go on ahead, I'll be out in a minute."

Stephanie walked to the back of the house and saw a lot of people. She had to shield her eyes from the sun so she could see. Some people were talking, others were playing volleyball and more were swimming.

"Hey Beautiful, so glad you made it." Lester said from behind her.

"Yeah I did."

"Let's go have some fun." he said taking her by the hand as they walked down the steps.

"Where's Carlos?"

"Took Julie for a walk on the beach. Hamburger or hot dog?"

"Hot dog."

There were oodles of food on the table. She put mustard on her hot dog and grabbed some chips. She grabbed a water bottle. She found a chair and began to eat. Lester sat beside her.

"Who are all these people?"

"Some work for Rangeman and some are neighbors and friends."

"It's like the whole neighborhood showed up."

"Almost."

When she was in the middle of eating, she heard her name. She looked toward the water and saw a little figure come running her way. Julie.

"Stephanie, I'm so glad you're here." Julie said hugging Stephanie.

"Hi, Julie, how are you?"

"I'm great."

"Where's your Dad?"

"He's coming. We were racing and I beat him."

"Here he comes now." said Stephanie.

She noticed a he wore a black tank top with black shorts and black sandals.

"We went for a walk on the beach and I found this seashell. Isn't it beautiful?"

"It sure is."

"Stephanie, so glad you could come."

"Thanks for inviting me."

"Your welcome."

"Julie, can you help me? I can use you too Les." said Celia.

Stephanie watched them leave.

"Would you like to take a walk?" asked Carlos.

"Sure." said Stephanie as she got up and threw away her trash.

"So, how do you like working for Rangeman?"

"It's great. Better hours, better benefits, I like it."

"Better than that other crap job you were in."

"Yeah, it did pay the bills, but I admit, this one is better."

"I'm glad you like it. So, how long have you lived in Miami?"

"A year. I used live in Trenton, NJ. I got laid off from E.E. Martin, a lingerie store. I couldn't find anything else there, so I thought I could find something here."

"To find something less interesting."

"Yeah, well, I needed the money and found a nice place. They needed a waitress right away so I took it. Crappy hours though."

"You should have told the Manager you wanted to change your hours."

"I did and he said no."

"He's a dick."

"Just like my ex husband. His name is Dickie."

"You married a guy named Dickie?"

"Yeah, the Dick Head, Dickie Orr is his name. He's a lawyer in Trenton."

"Did you divorce him because of his name?"

"No. I came home from work one day and I walked in the house and found them on the dining room table making out. It was my enemy Joyce Barnhardt. I divorced him a week later."

"He is a dick. No way would I treat a woman that way."

Stephanie told Carlos about her childhood. A song on the radio came on "Love Me Like you Do."

"Your the light, your the night

Your the color of my blood

Your the cure, your the pain

Your the only thing I wanna touch

Never knew that it could so much, so much

Your the fear, I don't care

Cause I've never been so high

Follow me to the dark

Let me take you past our satellites

You can see the world you brought to life, to life

So love me like you do, la la love like you do

Love me like you do, la la love like you do

Touch me like you do, ta ta touch me like you do

What are you waiting for?

Carlos was really interested in her life story. He got a little closer to her. She didn't notice. She just kept on talking.

Fading in, fading out

On the edge of paradise

Every inch of your skin is a holy grail I've got to find

Only you can set my heart on fire, on fire

Yeah, I'll let you set the pace

Cause I'm not thinking straight

My head's spinning around I can't see clear no more

What are you waiting for?

Carlos cupped the sides of her face and kissed her.

Love me like you do, la la love me like you do

Love me like you, la la love me like you do

Touch me like you do, ta ta touch me like you do

What are you waiting for?

Carlos backed away and looked at Stephanie.

"Wow. I wasn't expecting that."

"Sorry if it made you uncomfortable."

"No it didn't. It felt very nice. It felt a tingle go down my spine."

"I did too."

They kissed again. He put his arms around her waist as she put her arms around his neck. He caressed her back as the kiss deepened.

"Hey Celia, take a look."

Celia looked over to where Alyssa was pointing.

"It's about time." Celia said with a smile.

The kiss ended.

"That was amazing." Stephanie said panting.

"Yeah it was. I just couldn't help myself the first time. They way you were talking about family. Some parts were not so good, others were. Like the time with your Grandma. You had fun times with her. I just saw the happiness in your eyes."

"I was close to my Grandma. She was a lively one."

"I wanted to kiss you since the first time I saw you. I had to hold myself back..."

"Cause of your wife."

"Yeah. I didn't want to let go of the love we had. We had a good life together until..."

"Don't say it. She lived a good life, married you and have a beautiful daughter."

"Thanks. Celia helps out as well as Alyssa."

"You did a good job raising her."

"I do my best."

They kissed again when Julie came running

"Daddy!"

Carlos pulled back quickly.

"What's up kiddo?" Carlos said kneeling down and picking her up.

"I got you and Stephanie sparklers."

"Great, let's light them up." Carlos said walking.

"Are you going to marry my dad?" asked Julie

"Julie!" said Carlos.

Carlos took Steph's hand as they walked back. At eight thirty, they lit up the sparklers. Julie twirled around with hers. At nine, the fireworks started. Everyone oo'd and ahhd. Half an hour later, the show was over and everyone started cleaning up.

"I had a nice time tonight. Thanks for inviting me." Stephanie said to Celia.

"We're glad you came. You should stay tonight. There will be a lot of traffic and drunk drivers out there." said Celia.

"I don't want to impose."

"You're not. I have some PJ's that will fit you." said Celia walking in the house.

"Ok."

The house was big with two stories. Stephanie was pretty amazed with everything. Celia led Stephanie up the stairs. When Stephanie entered the room, she was absolutely amazed. French door that led out to the balcony, queen size bed.

"This is my other sisters room. Sylvia is out with her boyfriend this weekend. Won't be back till Monday. Let me get you some pj's." said Celia walking out. A minute later, Celia came back with pj's.

"Here you go. I know they will fit."

"Thanks. You have a lovely home."

"Thank you. It's mine and Carlos. Our parents gave it to us after they died."

"So sorry."

"It's been ten years. They've lived a good life. So, you have a good night and we'll see you in the morning. Oh, the bathroom is across the hall."

"Thanks."

When Celia walked out, in came and Carlos and Julie. Julie wore a blue nightgown with Elsa on it.

"I like your nightgown. You must be getting ready for bed."

Julie nodded.

"Have a good night and I will see you in the morning." said Stephanie hugging her.

"I'll be right back." said Carlos.

Stephanie went to the bathroom to change. A few minutes later, she stepped out of the bathroom when she saw Carlos waiting outside the door.

"Is she asleep now?"

"Celia is reading her a bedtime story. We take turns reading her one."

"How lovely."

Carlos kissed her with passion.

"My room is at the end of the hall on the right. Saturday is pancake like pancakes?"

"Yes I do."

"Great. Have a good night Babe."

"Night Carlos." said Stephanie as she watched him walk in the room and shut the door. Stephanie closed the door, turned off the lamp and got into bed.

During the night, Stephanie woke up. She looked at the clock, twelve thirty. She sat up and looked out the window. She laid back down and tried to go back to sleep, but she didn't. Then she heard a knock. She got up to see who it was. Carlos.

"What's the matter?" she asked.

"Couldn't sleep."

"Neither could I." Carlos said shutting the door.

Carlos was shirtless with just his underwear. He looked so perfect. They got in bed together. She put her head on his shoulder as he moved his hand in her shirt.

"Whoa, not here. Everyone will here us."

They slept with their arms around each other.

Chapter 8

The next morning, Stephanie woke up alone. She found a note on the other pillow.

Babe,

Breakfast will be ready when you come down.

Carlos

Stephanie sat up and stretched. She saw clothes on top of the dresser

These will fit you too.

Celia

Stephanie took a quick shower and then she headed downstairs. As she was going downstairs, she smelled pancakes. When she got to the bottom of the stairs, she saw Julie watching cartoons. She heard Carlos and Celia talking.

"I saw you and Stephanie kissing last night at the beach. Can you tell me why that happened?"

"I don't know, she was talking about her life in Trenton, NJ, where she grew up. She worked at EE Martin, a lingerie store, then she got laid off, divorced her jerk of a husband and then she came here to look for something else. She worked at a diner which had pissy hours. She only lived here a year. Then she talked about her family. She really got along with her Grandmother. She was very close to her and she married a guy named Dickie."

"Dickie?" Celia laughed.

"Yeah, she divorced him a week later when she found him making out with another woman on their dining room table."

"Oh, how horrible. Now I'm glad she got divorced. I wouldn't be stuck with a man named Dickie."

Stephanie smiled at that remark.

"I noticed you took your ring off."

"Yeah I did. I said to myself it's time for me to move on. When I first saw Stephanie at the church, something inside me changed. I wanted to make a move, but I couldn't."

"Well, Rachel would want you to move on. She wouldn't want you to be unhappy with the rest of your life."

"She makes me feel alive again. She is the light of my life and I love her."

Stephanie's stomach fluttered when she heard that. Did she love him? Could she love someone again? He's not Dickie she told herself. Her stomach growled so she made her way to the kitchen.

"Morning." said Stephanie smiling.

"Good morning. Did you sleep well?" Celia asked.

"Yes I did, thank you."

"Morning." Stephanie said to Carlos.

"Morning." he said smiling.

"Breakfast is ready. Julie, your pancakes are ready." said Celia.

Julie came running in.

The dining room was spacious. The table seated eight people. Celia sat at the head of the table, Carlos sat to the right of Celia, Stephanie sat beside Carlos to the right, Julie sat across from Carlos.

"How are you Julie?" asked Stephanie.

"I'm good." she said with a smile. Julie had pigtails with a pink shirt and white shorts.

"So, what are your plans today Steph?" asked Celia.

"I'm going back to my apartment. I have laundry to do." Stephanie said as she poured syrup on her pancakes.

"Where do you live?" asked Celia.

"Paraiso Condo."

"Very nice place. Maria makes good money to stay at that place. How do like working for Rangeman?"

"It's awesome. Better than what I was doing before with better hours."

"I heard you were married."

"Yeah I was. A very short marriage. I'm glad I divorced him."

"Do you ever think of getting married again?"

"Celia." said Carlos with a warning in his eye.

"Um, I'm not sure, probably not. Um, I have things to do." Stephanie said getting up. "Thanks for letting me stay the night and breakfast. I will return your clothes. Have a good day. Bye."

She quickly left the dining room and was just about to walk out the door when Carlos stopped her

"Babe what's wrong?"

"Nothing I have things to do. Bye."

He watched her drive off quickly.

Later that evening, Stephanie put away the last of the laundry. Now she just wanted to sit down and watch a movie. She was about to start the movie when there was a knock at the door. She answered the door to find Carlos.

"What are you doing here?"

"You left in a hurry this morning. I just wanted to know if everything is ok."

"Everything is fine. I wanted to get things done. I washed your sister's clothes so you can give them back to her."

"This isn't about Celia asking you if you were getting married again is it?"

"Yeah. It's something I don't want to think about."

"I'm not looking to get married anytime soon, so you don't have to worry ok? I want to get to know you more and I was wondering if you would like to go out tonight."

"Pizza?" Stephanie said hoping.

"Sure. How does Andiamo Pizza sound?"

"Great, let's go." said Stephanie getting up.

The place was a little crowded, but they managed to find a booth in the corner. Carlos sat with his back to the wall, Stephanie sat beside him. Stephanie ordered a meat ball sub and Carlos ordered a Greek salad.

"Did you have fun last night?" asked Carlos.

"Yes I did. Thanks again for inviting me. Celia put on an awesome party."

"I'm really glad you came." Carlos said grabbing Stephanie's hand under the table. He brought her hand up and kissed it.

"I love you Stephanie."

She smiled.

"I love you too."

Outside the restaurant, she looked through the window. She watched Carlos talking to the other woman and kiss her. She knew he would move on. Why would he wait for her, if she was presumed dead for six years? Rachel put on her hood and left.

Carlos drove Stephanie back to the apartment. She loved the engine sound of his Porsche. He walked in the apartment with her. She turned on the light and when she turned around, he gathered her in his arms and kissed. It was deep and passionate. They put their arms around each other.

"Where's Maria?" asked Carlos.

"Gone for the weekend. She went to go see Mario."

Carlos kissed her again and put his hands inside her shirt and was just about to touch her breasts when Stephanie slapped him.

"I'm sorry. It's been a while since someone touched me like that."

"A while for me too. I didn't want to believe Rachel was dead. When a woman approached me, I told them I was married. I wasn't ready to date anyone, until I met you several months ago. You have my heart." Carlos said putting her hand on his chest.

He kissed her passionately. She could feel his arousal against her stomach. His hands roamed all over her body. She did the same. He led her to the bedroom and they laid on the bed with her on top of him. She kissed him deeply. She sat up and took her top off, he did the same. She just loved his physique.

"I have to make a confession. When you invited me to lunch in your apartment and I accidentally spilled wine on your shirt and you were standing in the doorway of your room asking me if I wanted to come to the Fourth of July party, I was truly amazed of your physique. That's why I choked on some rice."

"Now I have a confession. When we came back from the distraction to get Antonio, I brought you in the apartment. You were out cold. When I covered you, you woke up and kissed me. Then you got sick and passed out again. I cleaned you up and put you back to bed. I slept on the couch."

"You said nothing happened, but I guess I can't complain. How was the kiss?"

"Like this." Carlos said kissing her deeply. They stopped and got off the bed to take the rest of their clothes off. Stephanie was absolutely truly amazed by his body. His penis standing at attention. She took off her bra and panties.

"You're beautiful." said Carlos walking towards her. He laid her on the bed, kissing her neck and caressing her breasts. He kissed each breast down to her stomach and came back up. He kissed her deeply as he entered her. She caressed his back as he rocked. He loved the feel being inside her. So warm. He closed his eyes as the feeling became more. They were both moaning as he quickened the pace a little. Then they both yelled so loud, the room echoed. He rolled off her as they both fell asleep in each others arms.

Chapter 8

The next morning Stephanie woke up alone. She sat up when Carlos came in with a tray full of food. He just wore boxer shorts low on his hips. He was a God! Fruit, OJ, cinnamon oatmeal, coffee.

"No doughnuts?"

She picked up the fork and ate a piece of watermelon. She put cream in her coffee and took a sip.

"The oatmeal yours?"

"No, it's for you. It's good for you."

Carlos had a wheat bagel with cream cheese and lox. Stephanie ate all of the oatmeal. When Stephanie finished her coffee, she looked at Carlos.

"Um, last night was great."

"More like incredible." said Carlos taking her hand. She deeply kissed him.

"I'm going to shower, care to join?" asked Carlos.

Stephanie smiled and followed him. They made love in the shower and an hour later, they were dressed.

"What are you doing today?" asked Carlos as they were putting the dishes and mugs in the dishwasher.

"Cleaning house. If Maria finds a speck of dirt or something out of place, she'll clean the place. What are you doing?"

"Going back to Rangeman. Stuff I need to get done." he said kissing her. "I'll call you later."

She walked him to the door and watched him leave. Yes indeed, it was an incredible night.

Later that morning, Carlos arrived back to Rangeman. He checked the control room and everything was in perfect order. He walked to his office, turned on the light and turned on his laptop. As it was booting up, Tank walked in.

"How was your weekend?"

"It was great. Celia threw an awesome party. The people across the lake set off their fireworks as usual." Carlos said looking through his computer.

"I know Stephanie showed up. How did everything go with her?"

"Everything went well. Celia had her stay at the house. It was late and Celia didn't want Stephanie driving."

"Tell him what else happened at the beach." Lester said walking in.

"We just talked. What are you doing in here Santos? Don't you have monitors to watch?"

"Yeah, I just wanted to put my two cents in. Tell him what happened." Lester said, leaving with a smile.

"So what happened?" asked Tank.

"I kissed her ok."

Lester yelled woo hoo in the hallway.

"You kissed her!" said Tank excitedly.

"Yes we kissed, we're involved."

"Go Bossman." said Lester.

Carlos got up and shut the door.

"I knew you had a thing for her. I could tell a few months ago when you both came down from your apartment from eating lunch. I saw the look you gave her when she walked back to her cubicle. You're in love with her aren't you?"

"Yes I am. She completes me, she's the light of my life. I never felt anything so strong before. Not even Rachel."

"I'm glad your moving on. We'll never forget Rachel, but I see Stephanie is special to you. Don't mess it up."

Tank left the room and Carlos went back to work. He opened the top right hand drawer. He picked up the picture frame and took out the picture of Rachel and replaced it with Stephanie. Celia took a picture of them on the beach on the Fourth of July. They were staring at each other fondly. He put the frame next to his computer and went back to work. Over the past four months, Stephanie and Carlos worked closely together. At one time, they thought one of Carlos' sources had a lead on Rodrigo, but they didn't. Halloween, Stephanie's favorite holiday, went trick or treating with Celia and Julie. Carlos bowed out. Stephanie went as a witch, Celia went as Jasmine from Aladdin and Julie went as Elsa. They had Thanksgiving at Celia's house. Stephanie called her father that night and talked about her and Carlos. He was very happy. Her father found someone a few months ago. It was pretty serious and maybe a wedding would be in the future. Stephanie was so happy for her day after Thanksgiving, Stephanie helped Celia and Julie pick up the tree for the house. They got a Douglas Fir tree. They put in the corner of the living room next to the fireplace. It took an hour and half to decorate. Stephanie helped Julie put the star on top. When Celia plugged the tree on, it was absolutely beautiful. Half an hour later, Stephanie went to get a Christmas tree for Carlos' apartment at Rangeman. She got a Douglas Fir for the apartment also. She wanted it to look cheery. She put the last of the decoration on the tree when Carlos walked in. She was putting the last ornament on the tree and turned around when she got startled.

"You scared me. I didn't hear you come in. What do you think?"

"It's beautiful. When did you get it?"

"This morning. Lester and Hal went with me. You were checking two clients about their properties. Tell me, what do you want for Christmas?"

"Nothing. I have you and that is enough."

"Oh, come on, I have to give you something."

"How about moving in with me. Some of your clothes are here and other stuff. What do you think?"

"I would like that very much." said Stephanie kissing him.

The next day, Carlos helped Stephanie pack the rest of her stuff. Maria was sad to see Stephanie leave, but was glad that she found love with Carlos. Maria was deciding if she was going to move in with her boyfriend or not. Mario would give her time to think about it.

On Christmas Eve, Stephanie and Carlos went to Celia's house. Stephanie and Carlos wanted to spend Christmas with each other. Celia was very happy that Stephanie was moving in with Carlos, so was Julie. Julie opened the gifts from Carlos, the other gifts she would open on Christmas Day. All of the other sisters and brothers would be coming on Christmas Day. Carlos got her a Kindle, clothes and a Lego Friends Butterfly Beauty Shop. Stephanie got her a Shopkins Bath Spa Gift set. She hugged Carlos and Stephanie. Stephanie got Celia Bath and Body certificate, Celia got her Victoria's Secret certificate. Carlos got Celia a certificate to Yankee Candle. Celia had a candle in every room. Celia loved that place. They had Ropa Vieja for dinner, wine. No one had room for dessert which was Flan. Stephanie cut a slice and put in a container to bring back to Rangeman. At eight, they left. When they entered the apartment, Stephanie collapsed on the couch.

"Did you enjoy the day?" asked Carlos joining her.

"Yes I did. Julie was very happy."

"Yes she was. She's really starting to like you. She told me she's really glad that you're in my life and was wondering if you're going to be her mom."

"Wow! What was your response to that?"

"I told her not to get her hopes up. I'm not looking to get married yet, maybe in the future, but not right now. I hope you feel the same way."

"Oh I do! Maybe in the future yes. I love Julie and she's a very sweet girl. You and Celia are doing a good job of raising her."

"Thanks." said Carlos

Carlos put on a movie. They watched It's a Wonderful Life. Half hour into the movie, Stephanie fell asleep. Carlos turned off the TV and carried her to the bedroom. He took off her clothes and tucked her in. He took his clothes off and joined her. He cuddled with her and fell asleep instantly.

Christmas morning, Stephanie woke up feeling refreshed. Carlos was still asleep which surprised her. He always goes to exercise early in the morning.

"Carlos, wake up, it's Christmas." Stephanie said shaking him.

Carlos woke up.

"Merry Christmas Babe." Carlos said kissing her. The kiss deepened. He got on top of her and they made love. Half an hour later, they lay together with their arms around each other.

"Hungry?" he asked.

"Yes very."

"I'll be right back." Carlos said getting up. She watched him walk out naked. Five minutes later, he came back with a tray of food and gifts. Carlos had a wheat bagel with lox and coffee. Stephanie had a waffle and coffee.

"Here open this." said Carlos.

Stephanie ripped the paper off. She looked nervously at the box and opened it. A Diamond Solitaire Pendant necklace.

"It's very beautiful, thanks." said Stephanie kissing him.

"You're very welcome."

"Now I have something for you." said Stephanie opening the top drawer. He carefully ripped the paper and opened the box to find a gold buckle with Carlos' name on it.

"This is very nice, thanks."

"I had them engrave your name on it. Do you like it?"

"Very much." Carlos said kissing her.

"Are you working today?"

"I have to get some paperwork done this morning and and New Year's Eve, I'm letting Tank, Lester and Bobby have Christmas with their family. I'll have some of the other guys here. Whoever isn't here, will be here on New Year's Eve. It works well that way. I'm also going to do some patrolling."

"Can I go with you?"

"Sure, I could use the help."

"Awesome."

They both showered and when Stephanie got out, Carlos kissed her goodbye and would see her later. At five, Carlos went back to the apartment to get Stephanie.

"We'll patrol first then we'll come back." said Carlos taking her hand.

They were out for five hours. She was amazed at the places he showed her. Ritzy places and nice looking houses. Stephanie was asleep by the time they arrived back to Rangeman. Stephanie woke up in the elevator. There were two guys at the control center. Everything was quiet, so Carlos and Stephanie went upstairs. Stephanie fell right to sleep when she got in bed. Carlos did the same.

New Year's party was held at the house. Celia invited a few friends. Carlos and Stephanie left an hour before midnight. Again, they patrolled the same area on Christmas. Everything was quiet and everybody seemed to be behaving themselves. A little after midnight Carlos saw a couple walking down the street and into a neighborhood. They had bottles in their hand and they did appear drunk. They drank up and threw the bottles into the road and walked up into someone's driveway. Carlos drove into the driveway and parked beside the guys. Guy number one wore a hat low on his head with a hoodie on with sweatpants. They both wore white sneakers. Guy number two wore a white sleeveless shirt sweatpants.

"Should you guys be somewhere else?" asked Carlos.

"Yeah here. I live here." said Hoodie.

"How about you?" Carlos asked the other guy.

"He's staying with me."

"Very well. Have a good night." said Carlos backing out into the street. Carlos watched them.

"Do you think the guy with the hoodie lives here?" asked Stephanie.

Probably not, but let's just be sure." Carlos said parking the truck on the street. Half an hour later nothing was happening. Just as Carlos turned on the truck he heard a noise. It sounded like it was behind the house. Carlos took out his gun in the glove compartment and got out of the truck.

"Stay here and if you see anything, take action." Carlos said getting out of the truck. Stephanie watched Carlos walk slowly to the back of the house. Stephanie took out her gun and was ready for anything. When Carlos reached the back of the house, he saw those two guys trying to break in the house. He slowly walked up behind them with his gun drawn.

"Breaking into your own house?" Carlos asked startling them.

"I forgot my key." said Hoodie.

"I know these people and they don't have teenager like you living here. So, we could do this the easy way or the hard way." Carlos said.

"Hey man, we'll leave." said Hoodie leaving.

Just as they were leaving, Sleeveless grabbed Carlos' gun and they both ran. Carlos took out his spare from his boot and ran after them. When Carlos came around the corner, Sleeveless was on the ground and Hoodie had his hands up.

"I thought you would need help." said Stephanie still pointing her gun at Hoodie.

"Thanks and I believe this is mine." said Carlos taking the gun away from Hoodie. Carlos cuffed Hoodie and Sleeveless. Stephanie cuffed Hoodie while Carlos cuffed Sleeveless. They put them in the truck and headed to the police station. Half an hour after that, they went home and slept.

Chapter 9

The first couple of weeks of January was quiet. Still haven't heard anything from Rodrigo. Carlos knew he was hiding somewhere. Even his contacts didn't know where he was. The search was still on. A couple weeks before Valentine's Day, Carlos approached Stephanie's cubicle.

"Hey Babe." Carlos said putting his hand in the back of her neck and kissing her. The kiss was deep and passionate.

"Mmmm, I will never get over that. I just love your kisses." said Stephanie smiling.

"I love all of you." Carlos said kissing her again.

"So, what's up?" asked Stephanie.

"Oh nothing. I just thought we could go somewhere for a weekend. Leave Friday afternoon and come back Sunday afternoon. What do you think?"

"Sounds great. When and where?"

"You'll find out soon enough."

The days before of their weekend away Stephanie was getting anxious.

"What should I pack for clothes? How come you can't tell me where we are going?"

"Don't worry, Ella has already packed clothes for you."

"Can you just tell me if we're going somewhere warm or cold?"

"Warm place, but I'm not telling you where."

Friday morning Stephanie woke up Carlos.

"Are we going to Cancun, Barbados, The Bahamas?"

"You will just have to wait." said Carlos with his eyes closed.

"I can't. You see, you're making me crazy."

"Good, cause I'm not going to tell you." Carlos said rising up on his elbows.

"You can't be serious."

"I am." Carlos said kissing her and getting up to go take a shower. She followed and joined him.

"Let me wash you." Stephanie said grabbing the sponge. Carlos put his hands on both sides of her face.

"Babe, whatever you do, it's not going to make me tell you where we're going. It's a surprise."

Stephanie pouted. They made love in the shower and an hour later, they were squeaky clean.

"I have a little bit of work to do before we leave. Are you going to do some searches?"

"Yeah I can."

They ate breakfast and went downstairs. By noon, Stephanie finished the last of the searches and walked to Carlos' office. He was on the phone, so she sat down and waited. Five minutes later, he got off the phone.

"Are you ready?" Carlos asked as he shutting down his computer.

"Yes I am. Can you tell me now where we're going?"

"Nope. You'll know when we get there."

All their belongings were already in the truck. Tank drove them to Miami International Airport where Carlos kept his private jet.

"We're not taking a big plane?"

"No. This way we can relax and enjoy ourselves." said Carlos whispering in her ear. The plane was black with white lettering Rangeman on it. When she entered the plane, it looked like someone's living room. Black carpet. Black leather sofas sat on both sides of the room. Small coffee tables in front of the couches. A fifty inch TV high up on the wall.

"This is nice." said Stephanie looking around.

"There's more to see." said Carlos.

Stephanie followed Carlos down a long hallway and when he opened the door, she was absolutely amazed. Cream carpeting, a king sized bed sat in the center of the wall with a black comforter. Cherry wood closets stood to the left. Stephanie turned around and saw a fifty inch TV on the wall. Then Carlos led her to the bathroom. When she saw the bathroom, her eyes nearly came out of her head. Two gold sinks with black marble counter. A walk in shower with rain shower head.

"This is an awesome plane."

"We're leaving in five minutes." said the Pilot.

"We'll test out the bed later." Carlos said whispering in Stephanie's ear.

They sat on the couch together. Stephanie picked a movie, Ghostbusters, while Carlos went to work on his laptop. When the movie was over, Carlos was still working.

"So, how long till we reach our destination?" Stephanie asked cuddling up to Carlos.

"About an hour and eighty five minutes."

Stephanie sighed as Carlos closed his laptop.

"Come on, let's test out the bed." Carlos said grabbing her hand.

An hour later, they lay in each other's arms.

"So, what do you think?" asked Carlos.

"It passes." Stephanie said smiling as she got on top of him. She deeply kissed him as they made love again. An hour later, Carlos woke up with their legs entwined all over each other. Carlos looked at the time and they only had eight five minutes until they land. Carlos woke up Stephanie.

"Wake up Babe."

"What." she said sleepily.

"We have to get ready. We'll be landing in an eighty five minutes."

They both showered. Carlos finished first and laid out their clothes on the bed. Carlos put on a black v neck shirt with white shorts with sandals. Stephanie walked out of the bathroom with a towel wrapped around her. She put on a yellow tank top with white shorts. She blow dried her hair and some make up on.

"Fifty five minutes till we get there." said Carlos.

Stephanie looked out the window and all she could see was water.

"Are we in the Caribbean, Bermuda?"

"No. St. Lucia."

"St Lucia!" Stephanie nearly shouted. "How come not Bermuda or the Caribbean?" Stephanie said sitting on his lap.

"I don't know, I thought this place would be more romantic." said Carlos kissing her.

"That's ok. We can go to those other places some other time."

Fifty minutes later, they arrived at Hewanora International Airport. They gathered their stuff and headed out the door. A limo was waiting for them a few feet away. The driver put their stuff in the trunk and drove off. They arrived at the Capella Marigot Bay Resort. The lobby was huge and very colorful. Seating in every corner. A brown leather circle settee sat in the middle of the lobby. The place was just beautiful. They walked up to the desk to check in. The desk was black marble.

A few minutes later, the Concierge walked them to their Penthouse Suite. When they entered, Stephanie was absolutely amazed. She walked in further to get a good look at the place while Carlos paid the Concierge. The floor were hardwood. To the right of the room, a spacious living room with a queen sofa sleeper, a flat screen fifty inch TV and DVD player sat on a huge entertainment center. There were a lot of movies to choose from. Fully equipped Italian Aster Cucina fitted kitchen. The counter was black marble, stainless steel fridge, Espresso machine. Stephanie opened the doors to the balcony. From the top, she was amazed by the view of Marigot Bay and the lush green hillsides surrounding the resort and the pools.

"This is so beautiful. Let's go check out the bedroom."

When they arrived in the bedroom, a king sized four poster canopy bed stood in the center of the room, a ceiling fan hung from a high beamed ceiling, a hot tub. The floor of the bathroom was marble with two sinks, a large soaking tub and a walk in shower that fit two people.

"This place is beautiful. Let's test out the bed." said Stephanie.

An hour later, they lay in bed.

"Are you hungry?" asked Carlos.

"No."

"Would you like to go swimming?"

"Sure." Stephanie said getting up and finding her bikini. She changed in the bathroom and changed into her red bikini. When Stephanie left the bathroom, Carlos changed into black board shorts. They walked to the pool and noticed a couple on the other side of the pool in deep conversation. The water was warm and inviting. Stephanie swam to the corner while Carlos swam laps around the pool. After the tenth lap, Carlos joined Stephanie in the corner of the pool.

"Good laps?"

"Yeah." Carlos said wrapping his arms around her waist. They were about to kiss when someone spoke.

"Hi there."

They both looked up.

"Hi, I'm Todd and this is my wife Madison."

"Good to meet you both." Madison said with a smile.

"We're here on our honeymoon. We got married a couple of days ago. Are you two on your honeymoon?" asked Todd.

"No, we're just vacationing." said Carlos.

"This is a great place. What suite are you in?"

"The Penthouse Suite."

"That must be nice. We're in the Bay View Suites, but I'm not complaining. Where are you people from?" said Todd.

"Miami, Florida." said Stephanie.

"Portland, Oregon. I'm a computer tech there. Been there for twenty five years. What do you do?"

"Security, 20 years." said Stephanie.

"Both of you? That's awesome. Well. we'll be going and it was nice meeting you." said Todd.

"Nice meeting you." said Madison.

"Bye." said Stephanie. "Nice couple."

"Yeah. So, where were we?" Carlos asked as he wrapped his arms around Stephanie. The kiss deepened as Carlos reached down to her bikini bottom.

"Hey, not here."

"Nobody is watching."

"Not here please." said Stephanie grabbing his hands.

They both swam for a while, then half an hour later they went back to their room.

"Are you hungry?" asked Carlos.

"Yeah, I could eat."

"Here is the menu from the restaurants to choose from." said Carlos.

They ordered dinner from the Rum Cave. Carlos ordered Grilled Chicken Breast Salad and Stephanie ordered Honey Sesame Chicken Wings. Twenty minutes later, Carlos came back with their meals. Carlos found bottled water in the fridge. They ate their dinner outside on the balcony. After dinner, they relaxed in the jacuzzi.

"So, what would you like to do tomorrow? Horse back riding, spa. There is a lot to do."Carlos said handing Stephanie the brochure.

"Spa treatment sounds good, I think will go to that. Riding horses sounds good too."

"Those are good. I also think taking a cruise to the Pitons and watching the sunset and going to see the Sapphire Falls." Carlos said.

"Sounds awesome." said Stephanie smiling.

Half an hour later, they got out of the jacuzzi. They got into bed and turned on the TV. Half an hour later, they both fell asleep.

Chapter 10

The next morning, Stephanie woke up alone. She looked at the clock. Eight o' clock. She found a note on the lamp.

Babe,

Went jogging. Be back later.

Love Carlos

Just as she was about to get up, Carlos came walking in with a tray.

"Good morning." said Carlos putting the tray on the bed and gave Stephanie a kiss.

"Morning. Did you have a good workout?"

"I did. I went jogging on the beach and the workout room."

"I see you bought breakfast."

"I did. I went to the Bayside Cafe and got all sorts of good stuff."

Carlos opened the lid on the tray and found fruit, croissants, bagel, OJ, coffee. Stephanie put on a robe and joined Carlos on the balcony. After they ate, they both showered and made love. Forty five minutes later, they walked to the spa.

"Both of you having this done?"

"No, just her."

"Just look over what you want and we'll go from there."

After ten minutes Stephanie chose New Moon.

"This process will take two hours."

"Ok. I'll be back in two hours. Have fun." Carlos said kissing Stephanie as he left.

Two hours later, Carlos came back. As he sat down, Stephanie came out of a room.

"How did everything go?" asked Carlos.

"It was great. My face feels smoother and cleaner."

"Indeed it does." Carlos said touching her face and kissing her. "How about we go to the Bayside Cafe for lunch then we can do the activities."

Forty five minutes later, they left the restaurant. Carlos took out the brochure from his pocket.

"Why don't we visit the Sapphire Falls." said Carlos.

It was a ten minute walk to the Falls. Tall canopy trees surrounded the Falls making the area dark and the air was balmy.

"This is so beautiful." said Stephanie looking around.

"It's also very private." Carlos said grabbing Stephanie's hands. They kissed deeply as Carlos put his arms around her. He lifted her shirt when Stephanie stopped him.

"Hey, what are you doing?"

"There's no one here. It's completely private."

"How would you know? There could be cameras on the trees or someone could be hiding."

"Believe me, no one is hiding anywhere." Carlos said taking off the back pack. his shirt, sandals then shorts and placed them on the rock.

"What are you doing?" Stephanie asked looking around.

"Going for a swim." Carlos said getting in the water. Stephanie watched him swim to the falls. Stephanie looked around and too off her clothes. She quickly went in the water and swam to where Carlos was standing. They walked behind the falls and made love. Half an hour later, they swam back to the rock. He opened the back pack and gave her a towel.

"It is so beautiful here. I hate to leave."

"We can always come back."

Forty five minutes later, they left and went back to their suite. It was too early to do the cruise thing, so they took a nap together. Two hours later, they got up and showered.

Carlos wore a white button shirt with tan shorts and sandals. Stephanie wore a red shirt with white shorts she was also wearing sandals. They sat in the back corner of the boat. Carlos sat next to Stephanie. The waiter brought over their wine as the boat left the pier.

"It sure is beautiful." said Stephanie looking at the sunset.

"It sure is." Carlos taking Stephanie's hand.

"Kind of strange that we're the only ones here." said Stephanie looking around.

"I had something to do with that."

"Really. Why?" Stephanie turning in her chair.

"Cause I have to ask you something." Carlos said getting up from his chair. Stephanie moved over to Carlos' seat. Stephanie noticed he looked nervous.

"Are you ok?"

"Yeah, um."

Carlos kneeled down and took her left hand.

"Stephanie, will you marry me?" Carlos said showing her the ring. 14 K White Gold Vintage Infinity sparkled in the setting sun.

"It's beautiful, but I thought we were going to wait."

"Yeah, we did. This feels right. I never wanted to be with anyone else until I met you. I was so hung up on my wife. You brought light back into my life and I want to spend the rest of my life with you. I want to wake up next to you every morning, make you breakfast in bed."

"I want to wake up beside you and have you make breakfast for me in bed and yes I want to spend the rest of my life with you and yes I will marry you."

Carlos smiled and slipped the ring on her finger. Stephanie stood up and kissed him. They stayed on the boat for another hour and went back to their room and made love till 3 am. Carlos woke up and looked at the clock. 10 am. He looked over at Stephanie. She lay facing him with her arm around his waist. He moved her hair away from her face. Stephanie stirred, opened her eyes and smiled.

"Good morning." said Carlos kissing her.

"Morning." said Stephanie stretching. "What time is it?"

"After ten."

"Wow."

"We did have a busy night." said Carlos gathering her into his arms and kissing her. When they stopped, Carlos noticed a sad look on her face.

"What's the matter?"

"We're leaving today and I'm going to miss this place."

"I arranged it so we can stay another day."

"Great! What are we going to do?"

Carlos reached over for the brochure.

"There is horse back riding, scuba diving at Anse Cochon. Go to Pigeon Point."

Stephanie looked at the brochure.

"I say we try all three. They look interesting."

"Great and that's what we will do."

They both showered and an hour later, they left to do the days activities. They walked along the shore when Stephanie noticed a Psychic reading sign on a window.

"Have you ever seen a Psychic?"

"No I haven't and I think they're a waste of time."

"Let's try it. Just this once." said Stephanie taking Carlos' hand.

When they entered, the place was dark with just candles burning.

"You two have a seat. I will be right with you."

They both sat down as Stephanie looked around. Two minutes later, a woman with flowing curly brown hair came out of a room. She wore a long maroon dress that went down to her ankles and had dangly crescent moon earrings. She appeared to be in her mid forties.

"Carlos and Stephanie. I have been expecting you."

"You have?" asked Stephanie.

"Yes. I felt your energy walking along the beach. You two have the strongest energy on this island. Congratulation on your engagement."

Stephanie just stared.

"I don't always need to be psychic that I did see the ring on your finger when I came in the room. My name is Selena. People think I'm fake, which I'm not. People come in here just for the fun of it, they think they're not going to get a real reading. Well, they are. The people that come here, they come back here and tell me that I'm right. One man came to me asking if he was going to propose to his girlfriend. I said yes you will. A year later, he came with his wife. He thanked me. Let me tell you, I don't use cards or read your palms. I'm a real psychic. Carlos, you are the youngest of siblings. You got in trouble when in your early teens. Your parents sent you to your Grandmother and later down the road you joined the Army to better yourself. During your break from the Army, you met a woman named Rachel. You married her right away and had a girl named Julie. She is six now. When you were through with the Army, you formed a company called Rangeman. Then a few years later, tragedy happened. It devastated you so. You got into your work..."

"That's enough!" Carlos yelled.

"Sorry. Sometimes I get too much into a subject and hit a sour spot. Won't happen again."

"That's right it won't! Let's go Stephanie." Carlos said getting up and walking out.

"I'm sorry."

"He'll be ok." said Stephanie getting up and walking out. Stephanie saw Carlos at the beach looking out at the ocean. She put her arms around him.

"I told you it was a waste of time."

"You didn't know she would go that far. She just got into the moment..."

"You know how long it took me to get over Rachel!" Carlos said looking at Stephanie. "Six long years and bringing up the past doesn't help! Every night when I went to bed, all I could see was Rachel getting killed by Santoro. Every single day I would search for Rachel's killer and I want to want to get that son of a bitch!"

"We will get him, together and I'm sorry for making you go see that Psychic. If you want to leave St Lucia, we'll leave."

"No, I don't want to leave. I want to enjoy the rest of our vacation. I don't want to waste the day worrying about what happened. Can we do that?" Carlos asked putting his hands on her face.

"Yes."

Carlos kissed her.

"Great. Let's go." said Carlos taking her hand. First they went scuba diving. Stephanie was amazed on how beautiful everything was. An hour and a half later, they went horseback riding. An hour later, they went to Pigeon Point Island. Again, Stephanie was amazed at the sites. At five, they arrived back to their suite. Stephanie walked out to the balcony. Carlos joined her as he put his arms around her waist.

"I'm going to miss this place."

"We can always come back. That reminds me. When would you like to get married?"

Stephanie turned around.

"You still want to marry me after what happened today?"

"Yes I do and I'm not going to let today bother me. I'm moving forward in my life. I love you and I want to marry you." Carlos said kissing her. He carried her to the bed and made love. The next morning, Stephanie woke up alone. She was about to get up when the door opened. Carlos carried in a tray and put it on the bed.

"I could get used to this." said Stephanie kissing Carlos.

There were strawberries, grapes, bagels, coffee.

"So, when would you like to get married?" asked Carlos sipping his coffee.

"How about October." said Stephanie taking a bite of her bagel.

"Why October?"

"Halloween. We can dress up. You can be Frankenstein and I can be Frankenstein's bride."

"That's not what I had in mind. How about September twenty second at the house. We can have our wedding at the beach. In the evening when the sun is setting. What do you think?"

"I think it sounds perfect." said Stephanie kissing him.

"Great. We have to leave in a couple of hours, so let's get moving." said Carlos finishing his coffee.

Just a few minutes before eleven, Stephanie stopped and looked around. She will miss this place. Hopefully Carlos will bring her back here for their honeymoon. She took one last look and left the suite. They got in the limo and drove back to St. Lucia Executive Airport. During the the flight, they napped. They made love through out the night, so they only had a couple of hours sleep. Two hours later, the alarm on Carlos' watch buzzed. Stephanie was lying on her side facing away from him. He moved her hair away from her face and kissed her cheek. She stirred and turned around. She touched his face and kissed him.

"How long have we been asleep?" Stephanie asked sleepily.

"Two hours and we are landing in ninety minutes, so let's get ready." said Carlos getting out of bed. Ninety minutes later, they landed at Miami International Airport. Tank watched them walk out of the jet and met them halfway. Tank gave them hugs.

"How was your trip?"

"Very relaxing thank you." said Carlos.

"You look well rested. Have fun?"

"Yes indeed." Stephanie said smiling at Carlos.

"Well, let's get you guys home then."

"How are things?" Carlos getting in the passenger seat."

"Quiet. Thought we had a break in on one of the accounts last night, but it was a false alarm."

When the elevator stopped at the fifth floor, Stephanie was about to step out when Carlos stopped her.

"Go on upstairs and rest. I will be up in an hour." Carlos said kissing her.

"Ok."

"So, how was your vacation?"

Carlos looked at him.

"As I said, it was very relaxing." said Carlos opening his office door.

"Yes you did, but there is something else. You seem more happier than before."

"I asked Stephanie to marry me."

"Well, what did she say?"

"She said yes."

"Congratulations man! Tank said hugging him. "When is it?"

"September twenty second. At the house on the beach. I will be in the evening at sunset."

"Sounds perfect to me."

"She enjoyed St Lucia so much, I'm going to take her there for our honeymoon. We really enjoyed ourselves."

"I'm glad you found happiness again. You two deserve each other."

"Thanks man." Carlos said hugging him. "You want to be my best man?"

"Yes I would."

Five months later, Stephanie was looking through bridal magazines with Celia.

"Nothing seems interesting. The dresses look too fluffy, too low cut, too high neck. I just can't find the right one and two months till the wedding."

"Don't worry we'll find something."

"We've looked through at least ten magazines and there is nothing I like. My last wedding was stressing, but not this stressing."

"Relax, we'll find it. Do you know where you are going for your honeymoon?"

"No. He wants it to be a surprise. I hate surprises."

"Wherever you go, you'll enjoy yourselves. You know what else. It's going to be a year tomorrow that you two been together. What are you two planning to do?"

"OH MY GOD! I completely forgot! I have to go! I'll see you later." said Stephanie running out the door. She made a stop first and then raced to Rangeman. When Stephanie entered his office he just ended a call.

"How was your morning?" Carlos asked.

"Very stressful. We've looked through several magazines and there is nothing that I like."

"Whatever you pick, you will look beautiful in." Carlos said getting up. "It doesn't have to be anything fancy, just a simple dress." Carlos said putting his hands on her face. "We don't need anything huge, just something simple. We'll have a small wedding. Just have our friends and family, you can even invite your father if you want. How is your father? Is he still seeing Sheila?"

"Yes he is and they are living together."

"That's great. Are you ok with that?"

"Oh yeah, totally. She is a very nice woman. She is great for him. I'm glad my dad moved on."

"Glad to hear that. I have a surprise for you." said Carlos.

"I have a surprise for you also."

"What is your surprise?"

"You first."

"I got us a three day trip to St. Lucia for the 4th of July weekend. Happy Anniversary."

"That's wonderful." said Stephanie partially smiling.

"You're not excited!"

"Yes extremely. My surprise is the same thing." she said pulling out a receipt and handing it to Carlos.

"You got tickets to St. Lucia also?"

"Yeah. Celia reminded me that our anniversary is tomorrow. It was a last minute thing and it's all I could think of. I wanted to surprise you and I've been so busy with the wedding."

"Don't stress yourself out. We'll use the tickets you bought for the Fourth of July weekend at St. Lucia. Don't worry." said Carlos kissing her.

They enjoyed their Fourth of July weekend. She thought this vacation is more exciting then the last one. Maybe because the Fourth of July celebration. A week later things got hectic. Stephanie got busy with searches, twenty of them and needed to be done ASAP. Carlos had three client meetings. They wanted to do business with Carlos, not Tank. During their vacation, the team picked up fifty skips and managed to get twenty of them. Late in the afternoon, him and the team caught the rest. Carlos arrived back at Rangeman well after midnight.

"Is everything ok?" Stephanie asked sitting up.

"Everything is fine." Carlos said getting into bed.

"Did you get all the skips?"

"Yes we did."

"Did you stop in your office before you came up?"

"No why?"

"I put twenty more on your desk. They just keep coming and coming. Seems like all the criminals decided to commit crime while we were away. We shouldn't have gone."

"We didn't know this would happen. I'll check those other files in the morning."

When Stephanie woke up the next morning, Carlos was gone. She took a shower, ate breakfast and went downstairs to work. By noon, she got caught up, so she went to the break room and ate lunch. When she arrived back, there were twenty files on her desk. Seems like there was no end to this. At three, Carlos and the guys came back. She gathered ten files and brought them to Carlos' office. When she entered, Carlos had his computer on and looking haggard.

"How did today go?"

"Terrible. We got all but one. We went to this womans house. She knew we were coming. She opened the door and the guns to our faces. Then her father shows up asking why we're at her house. I showed him the file and he says it's bogus."

"What did she do?"

"Robbed a bank. Her father is a judge, so he got her off. He said she is on medication for depressants and she forgot to take one that day."

"Do you believe that?"

"No I don't." said Carlos sitting back in his chair. Stephanie got behind the chair and massaged his shoulders. "This one guy we picked up, we told him who we were and the guys drops dead, heart attack."

"Oh wow. Did you still get the bounty?"

"Yeah. Fifty thousand."

"What did he do?"

"Rape and murder."

"I think we should go upstairs and continue this, cause you look like you're going to fall asleep."

"Hmm, sounds good." Carlos closing his laptop.

When they arrived at the apartment, Stephanie went to the kitchen to get the wine, while Carlos went in the bedroom. Stephanie found the lighter and headed to the bedroom. When she walked in, she found Carlos already asleep. She put the wine and glasses on the dresser and covered Carlos with a comforter. She kissed him, got undressed and got into bed.

Chapter 11

The next morning, Stephanie felt kisses all over her face. She opened her eyes and came face to face with Carlos.

"Morning."

"Morning." she said with a smile.

"Sorry I feel asleep last night. I was very tired."

"That's ok. You had a tough day and probably another one today. I left more files on your desk last night."

"Now you really killed the mood." Carlos said getting up and going to the bathroom. She heard the shower turn on. She headed into the bathroom and joined Carlos.

"This will put you back in the mood." she said kissing him.

"I was kidding." Carlos said kissing her. They made love. An hour later, they were dressed and out the door. She followed him into his office. She looked at the files with him.

"Come with me. You've been working so hard on these, I thought you could use a break from the computer."

"Sure. What do we have?"

"Two bank robbers, three shoplifters, three B & E's, one hit and run and a rapist."

"They all sound easy enough."

They captured the easy ones first. They found three shoplifters first. They all lived in the same neighborhood. Next they found the two bank robbers, right next door to each other. They found two B & E's, but not the third. Supposedly the guys house burned down the week of the B & E. They looked at Chase's file and the only living relative he has is his older sister. When they got to the house, it looked like it was going to collapse it was so old. The yard was a mess with some trash, sticks and leaves. A beat up red Jetta sat in the driveway. Carlos knocked a second later, a woman in her late thirties answered the door.

"May I help you?"

"We're looking for Chase. His house burned down, so I thought he would be here." said Stephanie.

"He's not here. Who are you?"

"We're Bond Enforcement Agents." said Carlos.

"What did he do?"

"Several B & E's." said Stephanie.

"Are you serious? I thought Juvenile Detention would've helped him and later on some counseling if he needed it. I guess nothing helped."

"If you see him, give us a call." said Stephanie handing the woman a card. "Do you think she's hiding him?"

"Absolutely. We'll come back another day."

Next on their list, they went in search of the hit and run skip. They arrived at the house just as a woman was getting out of her car.

"May I help you?" Evie asked

"Yeah, we're looking for Amanda. Is she home?" asked Carlos.

"No, she is at a friends house. Who are you and what did she do?"

"We're Bond Enforcement Agents. Three days ago she was in a hit and run accident. The person who got hit will be ok. When she comes home, could you give us a call?" asked Stephanie giving her a card.

"Yeah, sure."

As Stephanie was getting in the truck, she saw Amanda walking home.

"Hi, Amanda?" asked Stephanie walking toward her.

"Yes."

"My name is Stephanie and I'm a Bond Enforcement Agent. I need you to come with me..."

Amanda ran as fast as she could. Stephanie ran as fast as she could. Amanda disappeared behind a house then she heard a scream. When Stephanie reached the backyard, she saw Carlos cuffing Amanda.

"Let me go!"

"Amanda, you need to come with us." said Carlos.

"Where am I going?"

"To the police station. Everything will be taken care of there." said Stephanie.

"What's going on here" asked Amanda's mom.

"We're taking your daughter to the police station. You can follow us and you can take it from there." said Carlos putting Amanda in the truck.

"The accident three days ago, I was driving the car."

"Mom!"

"It's ok Honey. I was the one driving and hit the bike man. I made sure he was still alive. I had Amanda get in the driver's seat. I can't lose my bus license cause I need the money. My husband left me in debt for two years when Amanda was fourteen."

"There was a witness that saw the whole thing happen. You should have reported the incident. Putting your daughter behind the wheel and blaming her is just wrong. Everything will be decided at the station. Do you have any relatives nearby that could watch over Amanda?" asked Stephanie putting the mother in the car.

"I have a sister in Miami. She can come over and be with Amanda."

"Great, you can do that at the station. I will stay with Amanda till she gets here."

Amanda hugged her mom and watched her leave. Half hour later, the sister arrived and Stephanie told her everything that has happened. Fifteen minutes later, Carlos arrived to pick up Stephanie.

"How did everything go?"

"Very well."

"I hope everything works out ok. I would hate to see Amanda's mom in prison. Evie has been through so much."

"I'm sure they will work something out." said Carlos putting the car in gear. They stopped for lunch and after that they went in search of the rapist. The file said he lived in an apartment complex. When they arrived at the complex, the place was rundown and graffiti everywhere. There was a drunk man sitting on the ground. Stephanie stayed close to Carlos. They went upstairs and found his room at the end of the hall. They both had their guns ready and stood at both sides of the door. Carlos knocked.

"Harold Krest, open up." said Carlos.

"Who is it?"

"Bond Enforcement."

The door opened and Harold held up his hands.

"I'm willing to go quietly."

"Very well." said Carlos cuffing him.

Harold was bald and thin. His white shirt was dirty and so was his pants. They made it to station without trouble. They didn't they ever had a capture this easy, especially with a rapist or any other kind of skip.

"That went well, I'm surprised." said Stephanie.

"That's ok, made our day easier. Would you like to go find that third B & E?"

"Nah, we'll save that one for another day."

They arrived back at Rangeman at two. Carlos headed to his office while Stephanie worked on more files. When Carlos entered his office, he noticed someone sitting on the sofa. He turned and what he saw surprised him.

"Rachel." Carlos whispered.

"Yes it's me." said Rachel walking toward him.

"How can this be?"

"I'm not a figment of your imagination. I'm quite real." she said putting her hand on his cheek. Her hand felt warm against his cheek. He put his hand over hers. Rachel's had long brown hair, brown eyes. She wore a blue skirt with a white top.

"It's good to see you." said Rachel with tears in her eyes.

"Where have you been for the past six years? I saw you die."

Rachel dropped her hand and turned away.

"I've been in hiding, watching Santoro, but hasn't made a move. I saw him a couple days ago, but I lost him."

"I saw Santoro kill you. You don't know how much I have been through."

Rachel turned around.

"I know and I am sorry. A couple days before we were to raid the Santoro mansion, a friend of mine, Savannah, was dying of cancer. She only had two months to live, so she volunteered and surrendered to him. She knew this was going to be a suicide mission. I'm so sorry I did this to you and what you went through. What we need to do is catch this son of a bitch together!"

"Yes we will."

"How is our baby girl? I'm sure she is a beautiful six year old."

Carlos pulled out a photo of Julie.

"She is beautiful." said Rachel smiling.

"The school had their pictures taken a couple of weeks ago."

"I also know you have someone else in your life. How did you meet her?"

"Her name is Stephanie. Celia's friend introduced us and I felt an instant attraction, but I didn't want to get into any relationship because I didn't want to believe you were dead."

"You were being faithful to me." Rachel said putting her hands on his face.

Stephanie walked in Carlos' office and found a woman touching Carlos' face. Her smile quickly faded.

"What's going on here?"

"Babe!" Carlos said walking over to her.

"Who is this?" Stephanie asked.

Carlos sighed.

"This is Rachel, my wife."

"Wife! The one that you said is dead?"

"Yes. She faked her death so she could watch Santoro. She saw him a couple of days ago, but she lost him. Did you get anything new on him?"

"Right here." said Stephanie handing the file to Carlos and looking it over.

"This is what we need. He's at a Warehouse in Miami called Wynwood Warehouse Project. That place has been abandoned for years. Proud of you Babe." Carlos said bending over to kiss her, but she moved away and walked quickly out of Carlos' office. Carlos followed her.

"Hey Babe, wait up. What's the matter?"

"The matter is that your wife is back and when I walked in, it looked like she was going to kiss you."

"Nothing is going to happen. Yeah she came back and have a lot to catch up on. You have nothing to worry about. I love you and I want to marry you." Carlos said kissing her deeply.

The next day, Carlos, Rachel and part of the team went to go find Santoro at the Warehouse, but came up empty. Later that afternoon, when Stephanie had more files for Carlos to look at, she saw Carlos and Rachel sitting closely on the couch looking at a photo album. She quietly closed the door and turned around. She saw Julie holding an envelope.

"Hey Jules, what's up?"

"I want to show Daddy I lost my second tooth."

"Oh how wonderful. You can put it under your pillow tonight."

Julie nodded happily.

"Your Dad is on a call right now. You can show him later ok?"

"Ok, see you later Stephanie." Julie said running up the stairs.

The next afternoon, Carlos got off the phone with a smile on his face.

"Santoro has been spotted at another warehouse and we need to make a move now before he disappears again."

"Where?" asked Rachel.

"Comet Delivery Services."

"Great." said Rachel kissing Carlos.

When Stephanie entered Carlos' office, she saw Rachel and Carlos kissing. Stephanie quickly left. Carlos backed away before the kiss got carried away.

"Sorry, I just got excited. We should gear up." said Rachel grabbing her bag.

"I'm going to tell Stephanie the good news."

When Carlos walked down to Stephanie's cubicle, he saw her walking out with her coat and handbag.

"Babe, where are you going?"

"I'm leaving."

"Why?"

"I can't watch anymore of you and Rachel cuddling up on the couch together, kissing, I'm done."

"I didn't kiss her, she kissed me and I broke it off. She just got excited that one of my contacts spotted Santoro."

Stephanie started to go

"Please don't go." Carlos said touching her arm.

She looked at Carlos and turned and walked away.

"Stephanie!" Carlos said as he started walking.

"Let her go. Give her space." said Tank grabbing Carlos' arm.

Carlos watched her leave. Carlos turned and noticed something shiny on Stephanie's desk. It was Stephanie's ring.

"Where did Stephanie's go?" asked Rachel.

"She left. We need to gear up and get Santoro before he disappears again." Carlos said walking back to his office.

Stephanie couldn't stop the tears from falling. She ended up stopping at a Mexican restaurant. She went to the bar and asked for a Margarita. When she finished, she asked for a second one. A man in his mid fifties with gray hair and a goatee joined her.

"I see that's your second Margarita. What seems to be the problem?"

"My mans wife returned. Saw them kissing earlier."

"Oh, that's a shame. Now your drinking your sorrows away. You know what would make you feel better? A massage, pedicure, manicure, go swimming. I have everything you could ask for. What do you say?"

"Sounds great." said Stephanie slurring.

Santoro helped Stephanie into the truck and on the way to the warehouse.

Chapter 12

Carlos, Rachel and the team headed to the warehouse. Ten minutes into the drive, Carlos thought of Stephanie. He loved her so much, he didn't want to lose her.

"Hey Tank, stop here."

Carlos got out of the truck before Tank could put the truck in Park. Carlos walked up to the bar.

"Have you seen this woman?" Carlos asked showing the picture of Stephanie on his phone.

"Yes I have, about an hour ago. She had two glasses of Margaritas, then this man sat down next to her and having a conversation."

"What about?" asked Carlos.

"Something about a mans wife returning. Then he took her with him."

"What did this man look like?" asked Rachel.

"Lean, in his fifties, graying hair, goatee."

"Like this?" asked Rachel showing the picture from her phone.

"Yes, that's him."

"Thank you." said Rachel.

They headed to Comet Delivery Services. The place has been abandoned for years. They made a plan and split up. Carlos and Rachel went searching for Stephanie. The others searched for Rodrigo.

"When is the wedding?"

"September twenty second."

"I'm sorry I kissed you. I didn't mean for Stephanie to see that. I just got excited that Santoro has been found."

"Help, anyone there?"

They ran to the cell where the woman was shouting from. They noticed six women in the cell.

"Is everyone ok?" asked Rachel.

"Yeah, except one. She's been out since she got here."

"Stay back." Carlos said aiming his gun at the lock. Carlos kicked the door open and quickly went over to Stephanie. He put his hands on her face.

"Stephanie, can you hear me? Wake up! How long has she been like this?"

"Since she got here. What day is it? Is it morning, noon, night?"

"It's Saturday, early evening."

"I've been here a week?"

"How long have you all been here?" asked Rachel.

They started to cry.

"I see that you five women have been here the longest."

Carlos had Stephanie sit up on his lap.

"Stephanie wake up." said Carlos.

"Whatever drug that man gave us, knocked us out pretty good. Angie said I was out for a day."

"She must've gotten here early afternoon." said Rachel to Carlos.

Carlos called Bobby and five minutes later, Bobby arrived with Ram. Bobby checked her pulse.

"She needs to get to a hospital and fast." Bobby said picking her up. Rachel and Carlos ushered the women out of the cell. They watched as the women quickly left with Bobby and Ram.

"Don't worry, I'm sure Stephanie will be ok. Let's go find Santoro." Rachel said turning around."

"You have found him." Santoro said.

Carlos and Rachel pulled out their guns.

"That won't be necessary."

Rachel heard a click from behind. They both raised their hands. The guy from behind took Carlos' gun while Santoro took Rachel's.

"Well, well, I thought I killed you."

"You thought wrong."

"So, what have you been doing for the past what? Six years is it?"

"I've been watching you. You've been very quiet. What's the matter, run out of girls to snatch away!"

"Watch your mouth girlie! I took a vacation and then I thought I start up again. If that wasn't you I killed, who was it?"

"She was a friend of mine."

"Well, then I guess I have a second chance right?"

Santoro pulled Rachel and aimed at the gun at her temple.

"Don't you dare!" Carlos yelled and charged when the guy behind Carlos hit him in the back of the head with the butt of his gun and Carlos fell to the ground.

"Hey, I'm not going to do anything. We're just going to talk." Santoro said watching Carlos get up.

"My men are going to blow your head off once they find you." Carlos said whispering.

"You know what? I think it would be better if we talk in my office. Less interruptions." Santoro said taking Rachel by the arm.

"She's not going anywhere!" Carlos yelled and went after Santoro when the guy behind Carlos shot him.

"Carlos!" Rachel screamed.

"Leave him. Come on!" Santoro said taking Rachel by the arm. Rachel grabbed Santoro's gun from his hands. She lost her grip when Santoro shot her in the chest.

"That takes care of you." said Santoro turning around. What he saw in front of him, a gun barrel pointed at his forehead and was surrounded.

"Cuff him." Tank said.

Lester checked if Rachel had a pulse. She was gone. Tank ran over to Carlos and checked his pulse. Very faint.

"We need an ambulance!" Tank yelled.

Ram and Woody led Santoro out of the building. Bobby turned Carlos over. The vest Carlos was wearing didn't save him. The bullet went through into his chest.

"Don't die on me Rangeman!" Tank yelled.

The Paramedics rushed in and put Carlos on the stretcher. Carlos seemed to be floating. His eyes adjusted to the white light in front of him. The fog lifted and saw Rachel in front of him.

"Rachel."

"Carlos." she said hugging him.

"We're both dead?"

"Yes, but you have to go back."

"I can't lose you again."

"I'll always be in your heart. It's not your time, it is for me. You have someone waiting for you. She needs you." Rachel said touching his chest as he felt a jolt.

The EMT used the defibrillator for the second time.

"I have a pulse!"

The EMT put the oxygen mask on Carlos as the ambulance made it's way to Mercy Hospital. Carlos went to the OR immediately. Bobby, Tank and Lester sat in the waiting room. Four hours later, the doctor walked in.

"How is he?" asked Tank.

"Made it through surgery, Just missed his heart and he will make a full recovery."

"How about Stephanie Plum? She arrived an hour before Carlos."

"Oh yes. She had her stomach pumped. She had high amounts of cocaine and meth in her system. She's lucky."

"Can we see her?"

"Sure, but for a very short time."

When they entered, Stephanie was asleep. She opened her eyes when the door closed. She faintly smiled.

"How are you feeling?" asked Tank.

"Drained and tired."

"Do you remember anything?" asked Lester.

"I remember talking with Carlos then leaving. I went to a Mexican restaurant and had a couple of Margarita's. That's all I remember."

"You had two margaritas, so Santoro knew you were drunk and he took you to his warehouse where he held other women. He drugged them, I don't know why and we saved all the women." said Tank.

"Where's Carlos?"

"After Carlos found you and the women, I called for an ambulance, cause you needed to be taken immediately. Carlos and Rachel stayed behind to find Santoro. I guess there was a fight. When I came back in the Warehouse, I found Tank hovering over Carlos. He got shot in chest." said Bobby

"Is he ok?" Stephanie asked with worry in her voice.

"He will be fine. He's here too, three floors below you. When I came around the corner. I already saw Carlos on the floor, bleeding out and Rachel was trying to get the gun out of Santoro's hands, but it was no use. Santoro shot Rachel in the chest. She died instantly." said Tank.

"Sorry to hear that. What happened to Santoro?"

"The other guys put him in the Rangeman cell. Carlos wants a piece of him." said Tank. "We can torture him, but that's it. We're going to visit Carlos later if he is awake. We'll leave you to rest. Feel better." said Tank.

Later that evening, Stephanie got up and dressed. She put on the bathrobe that hung in the bathroom. She stuffed her things inside the bathrobe and left the room. She looked around the quiet hallway and walked toward the elevators.

"Where are you going?"

The voice startled Stephanie and turned to the nurse standing behind the desk.

"Going for a walk."

"It's late for a walk."

"I'm just going down the hall and I will be back."

"Five minutes."

Stephanie nodded and quickly got into an open elevator. She punched the down button to the third floor to ICU. She found the room Carlos was in. When she walked in, the light behind him was low and a nurse was checking his chart.

"Late to be visiting."

"I'll just be five minutes. I am a patient here. How is he?"

"He is stable. I gave him something for the pain, he'll be out the whole night." said the nurse hanging his chart and left the room. Stephanie walked up to the bed and touched his forehead and put his hand in hers. His chest was covered with a bandage.

"Hi Carlos, I heard what happened. I'm glad you didn't die and sorry to hear about Rachel, but I'm also happy Santoro was captured and put in the Rangeman cell. Everybody wants a piece of him. Now you can rest easily. I shouldn't have left and nobody wouldn't have gotten hurt or killed. As for us, I think we should take a break. You need to take care of things with Rachel's funeral and stuff. I'm going to Hilton Head South Carolina to be alone. I hope you get better and I love you." Stephanie said as she kissed his forehead. She turned and walked to the door. She turned to look at Carlos one more time. Tears started to form in her eyes and she walked quickly out of the room. She took the elevator down to the Lobby. She took off her bathrobe and straightened her clothes. The Lobby was empty and she walked quickly out the door to hail a cab.

Chapter 13

The next morning, Carlos woke up feeling like someone had been in the room.

"Morning, how are you feeling today?" the nurse asked looking over at his IV.

"Fine. Do you know if anyone was in here last night?"

"The night nurse was in here. She did mention a patient come in here, but didn't stay long."

"Does this nurse know what this person looked like?"

"Long brown curly hair, late twenties, early thirties, 5'7, slender. She wasn't in her room all night. She must've snuck out after. Why, do you know her?"

"Stephanie Plum, my fiancee."

"All the nurses searched every floor and she is not here."

"Don't you have security here?"

"They did see someone quickly get in the cab, but they didn't know it was her. The doctor will be in later to see you." the nurse said as she was leaving.

A few hours later, Tank walked in Carlos' room. He was sitting up with his eyes closed.

"Hey there Rangeman, how are you feeling today?"

"Doing just fine. Stephanie paid me a visit last night while I was asleep. She left the hospital and nobody knows where she went.

"Did you try calling her?"

"I only got her voicemail. I did leave a message. I put a tracking device in her phone. See if you can find out where she is."

"I can do that. Have you called Rachel's family yet?"

"Yes I have. I was on the phone for two hours explaining everything. They just don't understand why they have to pay for another of Rachel's funerals. I said I would pay for everything. They're planning to have the funeral next Wednesday. I'll be out of here by the end of the week."

Carlos got released Sunday. The doctor examined him on Friday and thought Carlos should stay another couple days. Tank picked up Carlos later in the afternoon on Sunday.

"Have you located where Stephanie is?" asked Carlos getting in the truck.

"She is at Hilton Head Island, South Carolina."

"Ok. Watch her and keep me updated. I'm taking the jet to Tallahassee tomorrow morning."

"Just don't over do it."

Carlos couldn't get to sleep that night. He was having pains in his chest. He took a couple of pills the hospital gave him and sat on the bed. He looked at the clock, twelve thirty. He picked up the phone and dialed Stephanie.

"Hey Babe. I've been trying to call you, but all I get is your voicemail. I hope everything is ok with you. I really miss you Babe. I need to hear your voice. I'm going to Tallahassee for Rachel's funeral on Wednesday. I hope we can get together after the funeral and talk. I love you Stephanie."

He hung up and put his hand over his face. He felt the medication kicking in and fell asleep. The next morning, Carlos woke up at five and showered. The doctor told him no exercise for two weeks. All his stuff was packed and ready to go. He checked his phone for messages, none. He gathered his stuff and went downstairs to meet Tank in the garage. The funeral home delivered the urn last night before Carlos went to bed. It was silver with Rachel's name on it. It also had the day she was born and when she died. He put it in the back of the truck. They arrived at the airport fifteen minutes later. Carlos gathered his stuff and carried the urn with both hands.

"Have a safe trip." said Tank.

"Thanks." said Carlos getting in the plane. The ride to Tallahassee took an hour and a half. When the plane landed and Carlos walked out of the plane, he saw a man with gray hair and a long black coat. Rachel's father walked over to Carlos.

"Too bad this visit isn't a happy one. Thanks for coming." said Robert hugging Carlos. Carlos put his bags in the trunk and the urn in the backseat. The ride to the Martin house took twenty minutes. The Tuscan Hill Old World Home is where the Martins lived all their lives. The grass freshly moved, flowers in full bloom in front of the house. Robert drove around the circular driveway and stopped at the front door. As Carlos got out of the car, a well dressed middle aged woman with her hair up in a bun came walking out. She wore a navy blue v neck dress. She walked over to Carlos and hugged him.

"It's wonderful to see you." Elaine said.

"It's wonderful to see you." Carlos said opening the back door. Elaine saw the urn and touched her chest.

"I'm sorry, I must go inside." said Elaine walking away with her hand still on her chest.

"Is she going to be ok?"

"She's taking this real hard this time." Robert said taking Carlos' bag while Carlos took the urn. When Carlos entered the house, he noticed white marble floor with a big pot of flowers in the middle. To the left, Carlos walked in the living room and put the urn on the mantel in front of Rachel's picture.

"Seems like she was just here yesterday."

Carlos turned.

"Yeah."

"I put your bags in the guest room."

"Thank you." Carlos said walking to the room and shut the door. The room was small with light tan walls, cherry wood entertainment center and a window that overlooked the backyard. Carlos sat on the bed and checked to see if he had any messages. None. He called Tank.

"Hey, it's me. Anything new?"

"Nope, all quiet here. Your prisoner is sitting comfortably in his cell."

"Good. Any changes from Stephanie?"

"No nothing."

Stephanie cleaned up the booth at the HH Prime Steaks & Seafood.

"Hey Steph. why don't you go home, it's getting late."

"Yes I know. I just want to make sure all the tables are cleared off."

"Everything is clean, now go." said Annie."

"Ok, night." said Stephanie walking in the back and grabbing her stuff. Stephanie walked slowly back to the room at Omni Hilton Head Ocean Front Resort she had been staying in for the past three days. She had to figure out some other place to stay. It was costing her money. She thought of going for a swim, but decided not to. She plopped down on the bed and stared at the ceiling. She took out her phone from the drawer. She had two missed calls, two voicemail. The first one was just silence. The next message was from Carlos. Tears nearly fell from her eyes. She deleted the message and put it back in the drawer. She went to the bathroom to wash her face. She put on a shirt and shorts and went to bed.

On Wednesday, the weather was sunny and warm. Thank God Carlos had a tent put up. On the table next to the podium, stood the urn. A lot of friends and family arrived at Rachel's funeral. The Priest said a few words and then Carlos went up to talk.

"Dear Family and Friends, thank you all for coming to honor Rachel's life.

Rachel and I met ten years ago while on leave from the Army. Rachel's brother and I were friends and we went out together at a bar and we connected instantly. After dating for several months, I decided to ask her to marry me on February 14th. Nine months after, we had a baby girl, Julie, who is a mini version of her mother. After retiring from the Army, Rachel and I worked tirelessly building Rangeman and we were blessed to be partners on several missions. We were inseparable. The most recent mission went terribly wrong. Rachel lost her life protecting me and other women. Rachel was a kind and loving woman and she always had a smile on her face. Our mission was to end a human trafficking ring and I can proudly say we shut it down and Rachel was instrumental in saving the lives of many women including our dear friend Stephanie. The hard work she put into that mission cost her her life. Rachel will forever have a place in my heart and I will always remember our good times and rough will be memories that I will share with my grandchildren. I haven't told Julie about really happened to her mother. When she turns eighteen I will tell her everything."

Carlos turned and touched the urn.

"Rachel, rest in sweet peace my angel. I know you'll be watching over Julie and I. I will love you and miss you."

Carlos moved away from the urn and sat down. The Priest spoke a few more words and then a friend of the family stood to the front. Anna had red curly hair, very petite and slim in her black dress. She sang Amazing Grace. There was a not a dry eye to be found. Twenty minutes later, Carlos moved the urn and put it on the mantel. Everyone took a plate and ate. Some ate inside and some out. Five hours later, everyone left. Carlos sat in bed that night. His chest was hurting some, but he ignored it. He tried Stephanie again. He left another voicemail.

"Hey Babe. Today was Rachel's funeral. No dry eye in sight. I miss you Babe. I need to talk to you and hear your voice. I love you Babe, call me."

"You know you've been working so hard. So I'm going to give you the rest of the day off. Go ahead, Zoey will be in an hour. I can handle things." Annie said smiling.

"Are you sure?"

"Yes go. Go to the beach and soak up the sun."

"Thank you."

"Welcome, see you tomorrow."

Stephanie quickly walked back to her room. She changed into her bikini. She grabbed a bag and put a towel and sunblock in it. She put on her sunglasses and headed out the door. She walked to the beach and there weren't a lot of people. She found a perfect spot. She took the towel out of her bag and laid it down on the sand. She sat down and put lotion on. After that, she took a walk to the shore.

Carlos was just minutes away from Hilton Head Island. He was getting close to Stephanie, he could feel it. He parked the truck and checked the tracker on her phone. She was at the beach.

As Stephanie was looking for the perfect seashell, she felt a tingle. She didn't have to look to see who it was.

"How did you find me?" Stephanie asked still looking at shells.

"I put a tracker on your phone. Not hard to find at all. I miss you Babe. Why haven't you returned my calls, why did you leave?"

"I left because I needed space, time to think. Seeing Rachel kiss you really upset me." she said turning around. "What if you saw me kissing Joe Morelli because he got engaged. What would you have done?"

"I would probably be upset, but I wouldn't leave. The kiss didn't mean anything. I broke it off quickly and I told her that was a mistake. She said she was sorry and she just got excited. Babe, I love you and I want to marry you. I know you visited me in the hospital."

"Are you ok?" she asked touching his chest.

"Yes. The bullet missed my heart. They say I died and came back. I came back to you."

Stephanie started to cry.

"I'm sorry I left. I shouldn't have left and then everyone would be ok and not hurt."

"Don't blame yourself." Carlos said hugging her. Carlos put his hands on her face and kissed her deeply. He ended the kiss and dug deeply into his pocket.

"I believe this belongs to you." Carlos said putting the ring back on her finger. "That's better. Now what we need to do is go back to Miami, take care of Santoro and then our wedding. Can we do that?"

"Yes." she said smiling.

"Great, let's go."

Seven hours and fifteen minutes later, Carlos and Stephanie entered Rangeman. They met Tank in the hallway.

"I'm definitely happy to see you." said Tank hugging Stephanie.

"Me too."

"How is our prisoner?" asked Carlos.

"Sitting comfortably in the cell downstairs."

"Would you like to come with me? He kidnapped and drugged you. I think you should have some fun also."

"I sure would."

They took the elevator down to the cells. When they arrived, Santoro sat in the corner. He looked up and they noticed that Santoro had a bloody face. His foot looked broken, so did his arm. They both walked in the cell.

"Sit down in the chair so we can have a better conversation." said Carlos.

Santoro didn't move.

"I said sit down in the chair!" Carlos yelled.

Santoro slowly got up. He held onto his side, walked slumped forward and limped to the chair and sat down. Stephanie went down on her knees so she was eye level with him.

"You remember Santoro? You kidnapped and drugged me. You see this needle? I am going to inject you with it. It's something that will slow your heart, but you won't die right away, I will save that for the guy standing right there. " Stephanie said injecting him. She dropped the needle on the floor and walked away.

"I'm done with this piece of shit. I will be waiting upstairs." Stephanie said kissing him. "I love you."

"I love you too Babe."

Carlos watched Stephanie leave as Lester, Bobby and Tank walked in. Carlos turned to the man sitting in the chair.

"You did a lot of bad things Santoro." Carlos said walking behind Santoro's chair.

"You kidnapped my fiancee and murdered Rachel." Carlos said taking out his knife. "You're going to Hell!" Carlos said slicing Santoro's throat. Carlos pushed him off the chair watched him bleed out.

Take care of this piece of shit." Carlos said walking out of the cell.

Tank patted Carlos' shoulder and took care of the body. Carlos smiled and left. He took the elevator up to seven to Stephanie.

Epilogue

September twenty second. The wedding of Stephanie and Carlos drew a small crowd at his house. Stephanie's father, Frank and his new wife, Sheila, attended the big celebration. They said their vows as the sun was setting. It was beautiful and romantic. Celia caught the bouquet. The next day, they made their way to their honeymoon, which surprised Stephanie. It was the best honeymoon ever.


End file.
